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1 



SELECT FRUITS 

from the 

Highlands of Beulah 



j/m.^umphrey 

Author of 

**8ermon8 That Never Die,'' ''The Lost SouVs First Day in 

Eternity,** ''Gleanings from Emmanuel's Land,'* "The 

Holy Ghost Searchlight," "Revival Fire in Song," 

"A Preventive to Suicide," "Beady Arrows for 

Holiness Workers," etc* 



TRUE GOSPEL GRAIN PUBLISHING COMPANY 

1118 WEST SPRING STREET 

LIMA, OHIO 

1913 



t^ 






COFTBIGHT, 1913 
BY 

J. M. HUMPHREY 



PRINTED BY 

THE FBEE METHODIST PUBLISHING HOUSE 

CHICAGO 



©CU346181 



l(btrati0tt 



IN LOVING DEDICATION TO 

MRS. MATTIE HUMPHREY 

MY FAITHFUL STEPMOTHEB, 
WHO REABED ME TO LIVE FOB JESUS 



FOREWOED 

For the benefit of the reader I here insert a few 
of John Wesley's suggestions on how to read a spirit- 
ual book. They are as follows: 

1. ''Assign some stated times every day for this 
pious employment. If any indispensable business 
unexpectedly robs you of your hour of retirement, 
take the next hour for it." 

2. ''Prepare yourself for reading by purity of 
intention, whereby you singly aim at your soul's 
benefit." 

3. "Be sure to read not curiously and hastily, 
lut leisurely, and with great attention; with proper 
intervals and pauses, that you may allow time for 
the enlightenings of divine grace. Stop every now 
and then, to recollect what you have read, and 
consider how to reduce it to practice/' 

4. "Let your reading be continued and regular, 
not rambling and desultory." 

5. "Labor for a temper correspondent to what 
you read; otherwise it will prove empty and un- 
profitable." 



CONTENTS 

Chapter Page 

foeewobd 5 

Introduction 9 

I.— God With Us 11 

II. — Nature's Three Great Preachers 14 

III.— The Goodness of God 19 

IV.— Confidence 22 

v.— Life's Race 28 

VI.— Hinder Me Not 34 

VII.— The Ministry of Prayer 41 

VIII.— The Great Salvation 46 

IX. — Love for the Lord 49 

X.— The Fire of God 52 

XI. — Do Christians Commit Sin? 57 

XII.— The Pious Tramp 63 

XIII.— Walking in the Light 65 

XIV.— True and False Joy 68 

XV.— Humility 71 

XVI. — A Good Conscience 74 

XVII.— Hints on Church Etiquette 77 

XVIIL— An X-Ray Examination 79 

XIX.— A Glimpse of Heaven 83 

XX.— The Call of Death 86 

XXI. — The Difference Between the Sinful and the 

Legitimate 90 

XXII.— Modern Idolatry 95 

XXIII.— Blood-Guiltiness 98 

XXIV.— Christian Influence 103 

XXV.— Seriousness 107 

XXVI.— White Motive 110 

XXVII.— Complete Submission 113 

XXVIIL— Steps to Spiritual Success 116 

XXIX.— Looking Back 122 

7 



8 CONTENTS 

XXX.— Obtaining and Retaining Divine Healing. . . 125 

XXXI.— Getting Out of Divine Order 129 

XXXIl.— Sanctity in Behavior 132 

XXXIII.— Tlie Potter and the Clay 134 

XXXIV.— Blighted Soul Blossoms 140 

XXXV. — Progression and Retrogression 145 

XXXVI. — Some Things to be Forgotten 148 

XXXVII.— "Rivers of Living Water" 150 

XXXVIII.— Tempting the Lord 152 

XXXIX.— Faith, Hope and Love 157 

XL.— Our Need of Each Other 162 

XLL— Giving Place to the Devil 165 

XLIL— The Church in Symbols 168 

XLIIL— Ode to the Bible 172 

XLIV. — Benefits Derived from Oppositions, etc.... 173 

XLV.— On Trying the Spirits 176 

XLVL— Club Throwing 181 

XLVIL— The Things That Are Caesar's 184 

XLVIII.— A Spiritual Appetite 187 

XLIX.— Keep Sailing On 190 

L. — Some Fruits of Holiness 191 

LI. — Signs of Heart Backsliding 193 

LII. — A Vision of Duty and Privilege 197 

LIIL— The Speaking Blood 200 

LIV. — Fervency of Spirit 204 

LV.— Some Ways of Spoiling a Child 206 

LVL— The Little Foxes 208 

LVIL— The Resurrection 210 

LVIII.— Crying for the Razor 212 

LIX.— Testimony 214 

LX. — How to Settle a Disagreement 216 

LXL— "He Knoweth" 218 

LXIL— Sanctified Individuality 221 

LXIIL— Life's Sunset , 226 



INTRODUCTION 

While musing o'er the sacred Truth 

Which God in mercy spoke; 
Down in the chamber of my heart 

These scatt'ring thoughts awoke. 

While strolling 'long the sea of grace 

One evening all alone, 
I stopped and seized with great delight 

This little pebble-stone. 

While scaling Canaan's sacred hill, 

'Mid flow'rs of ev'ry hue, 
I stoop'd with heart aglow with love 

To pluck this bud for you. 

While roving 'mong its vernal trees 

With awe and wonder mute, 
I picked from just a single bough 

This tiny bit of fruit. 

— The Author 



CHAPTER I. 

^^GOD WITH US^^ 
Matt. 1 : 23. 

Our purpose in this little message is to introduce 
our reader more fully to God. One of the three great 
mistakes made by modern Christians is, they have 
too small a conception of the God they serve. They 
are so accustomed to small , Umitable things, until 
it is quite difficult to get them to form any reason- 
able conception of the great God. 

Let us notice some of the titles He has intro- 
duced Himself to us by. 

1. ^'JehovaW (the self -existing God). "Shad- 
dai^' (the Almighty). ^^ Alpha and Omega" (the be- 
ginning and the end). "/ Am that I Am" (all you 
need, an unfilled check, an exhaustless supply.) 

2. The next great mistake we make is, we look 
at circumstances before we look at God. Hence the 
dire circumstances sometimes so fill the horizon of 
our spiritual vision, until we fail to see God at all. 
For instance, if we are sick, we look at the disease 
rather than the Great Physician. We fail to remem- 
ber that God is just as able to heal a cancer or a 
tumor as He is the headache. If David should have 
looked at circumstances, when he went to meet Go- 
liath, he would have surely failed. But he kept look- 

u 



12 SELECT FRUITS 

ing at the Great God until the Giant was trans- 
formed into a grasshopper (so to speak). 

Should the Hebrew boys have looked at circum- 
stances they would have failed to get the fireproof 
experience, and to have seen the glorious form of the 
^on of God. Should Daniel have looked at circum- 
stances he would not have triumphed over the lion's 
den and stood forth to all succeeding generations as 
a monument of courage. These men looked beyond 
the sword, the angry lions and leaping flames, and 
saw angels, chariots and horses of fire. 

Praise God! 

Our third mistake is, we see God as a far-off God. 
We allow too much space to come between us and 
Him. We pray as if He was billions of miles away. 
But He has said, ''Lo, I am with you alway," "I 
will never leave thee," "I will dwell in them." Oh, 
what a reproof to our unbelief ! 

We hear people sometimes make the following re- 
marks : "Oh, the Lord was wonderfully with me to- 
day! Oh, I felt Him so near!" At other times we 
have heard them say (though equally as clean and 
holy) : "The Lord was not with me to-day, for I 
have not felt any special uplift all day." They fail 
to realize that God is to be served by faith and not 
by feelings. Of course, if we serve Him properly, the 
feelings will come. However, feeling is not to be 
made our criterion. 

Let us notice a few ways God is to be appro- 
priated. 

1. He is to be trusted and relied upon, as we 
would a visible friend. Suppose you had a note due, 
and were short of the finance to meet it, you would 



*^'god with us'^ 13 

no doubt go to your best friend and explain cir- 
cumstances and ask for a loan of the needed amount. 
And if he should tell you to come on the day it 
was due and get the money, what a relief it would 
bring to you ! O, how you would dismiss every atom 
of loorry and uneasiness, and rely implicitly upon 
your friend ! Well, this is just the way God wants 
you to rely upon and trust Him; and in doing so, 
you shall never be confounded. 

2. He is to be recognized as a God of details, 
i. e., a God that takes notice of the smallest thing 
concerning the welfare of His children. The enemy 
would make us think that He is only willing to as- 
sist us in the large burdens and sorrows of life, but 
does not care to be bothered with the smaller ones. 
But it is not true. He is just as willing to assist us 
in the smallest care as in the largest one, provided 
we commit them to Him by simple faith and prayer. 

Again, people sometimes think that God does 
not realize the urgent need, and great responsibility 
connected with some matters which they take to 
Him in prayer; hence, in their impetuosity and 
blind zeal, they rush down to Egypt for help, and 
thus grieve God and bring leanness to their soul. 

3. The next thing to be remembered is this : 
There is nothing in heaven, earth or hell that can 
molest a child of God, unless it first gets permission 
from Him. Therefore, we need not worry over the 
daily happenings, ill luck, etc. The devil, our great- 
est foe, could not even molest a herd of swine, with- 
out first getting permission from the great God. And 
are we not more precious in His sight than they? 
"O ye of little faith!" 



CHAPTER II. 

NATURE^S THREE GREAT PREACHERS. 

When we stop and consider the variety of preach- 
ers God is using in His great effort to save lost 
men, it is truly marvelous. He is using everything 
from a crawling insect to a revolving planet. He 
has so bestudded this old world with preachers of 
righteousness, that it is utterly impossible for a 
man or woman to continue upon earth twenty-four 
hours and not hear a gospel sermon. 

My purpose in this chapter is to call the atten- 
tion of the reader to three of nature's great preach- 
ers, and also paraphrase their resistless message. 

1. The first one is, the Cooing Dove. We read 
in the Songs of Solomon 2 : 12, the following words : 
"The flowers appear on the earth, the time of the 
singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle 
is heard in our land." ^'The voice of the turtle/^ i e., 
the cooing dove, is one of the resistless preachers 
to which I wish to direct the attention of the reader. 

Let us now proceed to paraphrase the dove's mis- 
sion and message. First : It is to remind busy man 
of a forgotten God and a slighted heaven. When we 
look about us and see mankind in their mad rush 
and almost breathless pursuit after gold, pleasure 
and fame, they do not seem to have God or heaven 
in the least of their thought. But God in His infi- 

14 -%». 



nature's three great preachers 15 

nite mercy has sent this sublime messenger to the 
earth, to remind man of his Maker and a slighted 
heaven. What civilized man, woman, boy, or girl 
is to be found who can look upon this gentle, harm- 
less bird, and listen to its heart-touching, soul-stir- 
ring, awe-stricken mourn, and not be pierced through 
with the awful thought of God, Eternity, Heaven 
and Hell? 

Second : Her next mission is to remind man of 
the gentle, entreating, wooing Holy Spirit who has 
followed him daily from life's early morning, plead- 
ing with him to leave sin's road and yield to Christ 
and live. He has used every conceivable means in 
this great attempt. Yes, he has sent sorrow in your 
life, poverty in your home, and death in your family, 
but yet you have failed to heed His gentle voice. 

Third: Her next mission is to remind man of 
Christ, the world's Kedeemer. When we look upon 
the Dove, we are at once reminded of Noah's dove 
and the "olive branch of peace" which symbolized 
the coming "Prince of Peace," the Christ of God, 
whose mission it should be to reconcile lost man to 
God, and earth to heaven. Hence, it is almost im- 
possible to look upon this God-sent bird and listen 
to her mournful appeal, and not be reminded of the 
once crucified and risen Redeemer of the world. 

Fourth: Her next great mission is to remind 
busy man of a coming judgment day, when this old 
world shall be destroyed by fire. We believe we are 
safe in saying that eight persons out of every ten, 
who are familiar with the story of Noah and the 
flood, are immediately reminded of the destruction 
of the old world when they hear this strange bird's 



16 SELECT FRUITS 

lamentable song. When I was a boy, I never heard 
a more impressive sermon than the rueful evening 
song of the turtle dove. Well do I remember how it 
made my boyish heart swell and my eyes fill with 
tears, as I looked up into the blue vault and thought 
of God, heaven and a coming judgment day. 

2. The next one of nature's great preachers that 
I wish to mention is the "Fading Leaf." In Isa. 
64 : 6, we read these words : "And we all do fade as 
a leaf." Where can we find a more striking object 
lesson and a more convincing preacher than a fading 
leaf? 

Let us briefly notice the message of the "Fading 
Leaf." Its first message is to remind the children 
of Adam of the short duration of strength and 
Tieauty, We all remember how beautiful the trees 
are in the springtime, clothed in their annual robe. 
We also remember how quickly they fade and fall 
to the ground. Just so it is with all the children of 
Adam, no matter how strong, healthy, or beautiful. 
It will only be a few years until Time will engrave 
her wrinkles in our faces, frost our hair, wither all of 
our bloom, and in a few brief years number us with 
the dead. 

The second message of the Fading Leaf, is to 
yearly remind man that all upon earth is vanity and 
will soon pass away. "I saw a temple reared by the 
hand of man, standing with its high pinnacles in 
the distant plain. The streams beat about it, the 
God of nature hurled His thunderbolts against it; 
yet it stood as firm as adamant. Kevelry was in the 
hall; the gay, the happy, the young, the beautiful, 
were there. I returned and, lo! the temple was no 



NATURE^S THREE GREAT PREACHERS 17 

more. Its high walls lay in scattered ruin. 'Who is 
the destroyer?' said I to my guardian angel. 'It is 
Time,' he said." 

"How vain is all beneath the skies! 

How transient ev'ry earthly bliss ! 
How slender all the fondest ties 

That bind us to a world like this !" 

3. Nature's next great preacher is the Setting 
Sun. In Eccles. 12 : 2, we read the following words : 
''While the sun * * * be not darkened." Let us 
briefly observe the message of the Setting Sun. First, 
it reminds busy man of his pial retiring from the 
duties and various occupations of this life — when 
we shall come home from the field, the shop, the office 
and the store for the last time, and our sun of this 
life will set to rise no more. 

Second: It also reminds the sinner of the aw- 
ful night of hell that will succeed the sunset of his 
life. Jesus said, "The night cometh, when no man 
can work" (John 9:4). Let us notice some charac- 
teristics of that night. 

First: It will be a night without rest or sleep. 
"And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for- 
ever and ever : and they have no rest day nor night." 

Second : It is a night of impenetrable darkness. 
'And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer 
darkness" (Matt. 24:30). "To whom is reserved 
the blackness of darkness forever" (Jude 13). 

Third : It shall be a night of excruciating pain. 
"There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth" 
(Matt. 8:12). "And they gnaw their tongues for 
pain" (Rev. 16: 10). "Where their worm dieth not 
and the fire is not quenched" (Mark 9: 44). 



18 SELECT FRUITS 

Fourth : It shall be an endless night. "And the 
smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and 
ever" (Rev. 14:11). "Who among us shall dwell 
with everlasting burnings?" (Isa. 33: 14). 



CHAPTER III. 



THE GOODNESS OF GOD. 



"The goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance" (Rom. 
2:4). 

The sin of the age, among all classes and nations, 
is ingratitude to God. If heaven would pass away 
and hell would burn up, every man and woman 
in the universe should serve God anyway, for His 
great benefits bestowed upon them from day to day. 

Now reader let us take a retrospection of our 
lives and notice the unmerited favors which God 
has so graciously bestowed upon us from time to 
time. 

First : We are out of hell ; if we had justice dealt 
to us, we would have been in hell where Hope and 
Mercy are strangers. Think of the many times we 
have sinned against God by breaking His laws time 
and again, yet He has spared us a while longer. Just 
think of the millions who are in hell, who did not 
sin against Him as long as we have. There are 
souls there who were cut off before they reached the 
age of twenty. But we are yet in the land of Mercy 
and Pardon. O, the marvelous goodness of God! 

Secondly, God in His great mercy granted us a 
second chance, i. e., when man was put on trial in 
Eden and fell, God gave him another chance to re- 
gain His favor, by giving His Son to die for him, 

19 



20 SELECT FRUITS 

which favor was not granted to the fallen angels, 
but they are ' 'Reserved in everlasting chains under 
darkness, unto judgment of the great day" (Jude 6). 
Satan would give a million worlds, if he had them, 
to have the privilege we have of praying, re- 
penting , and obtaining the favors of God, but 
it can never be granted. O think my brother ! What 
a great privilege we have which devils and lost spirits 
are deprived of. They only committed one offense 
that we are aware of, and were cast down to hell 
without being granted a chance to repent. You and 
I have offended God times without number, and still 
the door of mercy is open to us. But O, how soon 
it may close, if we do not accept the long offered 
pardon. 

Third: Our lives are prolonged. Friend, it is 
actually a miracle to be alive, when we look around 
us and observe the many instruments of death that 
are thick in the land to hurry mortals home. Think 
of the thousands that are killed yearly by the fast 
railroad cars and the thousands that go down to a 
watery grave every year, and the thousands who are 
killed in the cities yearly by gas explosions, elec- 
tric cars, runaway horses, and adulterated foods, 
etc. When we consider how much poisonous food 
enters our systems, why it is only God who keeps 
us alive. Think of the poisonous meats, and stale 
eggs and the stale canned food that we get, which 
doubtless has been canned for years. O, it is only 
the goodness of God that we are alive! How true 
are the words of the poet, who says, 

"Death rides upon the passing breeze, 
And lurks In every flower; 



THE GOODNESS OP GOD 21 

Each season has its own disease, 
Its perils every hour." 

Fourth: We still enjoy health. Men do not 
realize what a God-given blessing it is to have health. 
It is not properly appreciated until it is gone. But 
when we visit the sick rooms, and the hospitals, the 
health resorts and other places and see the hundreds 
of souls that are there, shut in, confined to a bed or 
a dark chamber or in an invalid's chair, or hobbling 
on a pair of crutches, or raving in an insane asylum 
with reason lost in their stormy brain ; then and not 
until then, do we know how to appreciate the good- 
ness of God by giving us health. 

Fifth: God keeps the lamp of hope burning in 
our breast. O, what a miserable world this would 
be if the lamp of hope would be blown out ! Amidst 
sorrow's bitterest cup we are encouraged to hope 
it will be sweeter to-morrow. In disappointment's 
gloomiest vale, we are encouraged to hope for a 
brighter day. Under poverty's cold iron hand, we 
cheer up, and, with inspiring hope, look for better 
times. But life would be a burden without the 
lamp of hope. This is why hell is so gloomy and 
dismal because hope dies in every breast that crosses 
its threshold. It is a place where hope is a stranger, 
where for hope and joy they reap despair. Now, 
dear readers, do you think that God is making any 
unfair demand on you by requiring a wholehearted 
service? Now from this hour surrender yourself to 
Him completely which is your reasonable service and 
you will be greatly benefited both in this world and 
the world to come. Amen, 



CHAPTER IV. 



CONFIDENCE. 



"Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath 
great recompence of reward" (Heb. 10: 35). 

While meditating on the above text I was espe- 
cially impressed with the word ^'GonjidenceJ' First, 
in its relation to God, and then in its relation to 
man. 

The primary meaning of the word, says Webster, 
is '^A trusting or reliance; an assurance of mind or 
firm belief in the integrity, stability, or veracity of 
another." There is not a factor in the church of 
Jesus Christ that Satan strives more incessantly to 
destroy than he does ^'Confidence." The cause for 
this may be found in the two following reasons: 
First, '^Confidence" is the coupling-pin that links 
man to God, and earth to heaven. ''He that cometh 
to God must believe that He is, and that He is a re- 
warder of them that diligently seek Him" (Heb. 
11:6). Secondly, "Confidence" is the coupling-pin 
that links man to man. It would be impossible to 
do business in the commercial world if men were 
void of confidence in each other. It takes a degree 
of confidence to deposit money in a bank, post a 
letter, send a telegram, buy a railroad ticket, etc., 
etc. If confidence is such an important factor in 
the business world, and men find it utterly impos- 

22 



CONFIDENCE 23 

sible to succeed without it, of how much greater im- 
portance must it be in the religious world, since it 
is utterly impossible to advance the kingdom of 
Jesus Christ without it? 

Let us briefly notice some of the reasons why we 
need confidence toward God. 

First, it delivers us completely from doubts and 
fears, and gives us clearness, assurance, and soul 
rest. How well do we all remember the time when 
we were tormented with doubt and fear, and pressed 
down beneath the load of sin and guilt! But when 
we fully trusted Jesus, we received a witness that our 
many sins were all forgiven, and immediately every 
doubt vanished and there sprung up spontaneously 
in our hearts a peace, rest, and assurance that all 
hell could not refute. 

A second reason why we need confidence in God 
is because it opens the door and clears the way for 
Him to verify His promises with us. The Bible with 
its three thousand promises is of no value to the man 
who does not have enough confidence in the God of 
heaven to rely and depend upon Him for their ful- 
filment. The promises are valueless unless we have 
confidence to step out upon them. 

A third reason why we need to retain confidence 
in God is that it lays the foundation for hope, i. e., 
a reliance upon God for protection and reward in 
the day of judgment. Since He has been so faith- 
ful in assisting us and has brought us through so 
many hard and difficult places, we are therefore 
encouraged to trust Him for future protection. Job 
said, "I know that my Kedeemer liveth, and that He 
shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and 



24 SELECT FRUITS 

though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet 
in my flesh shall I see God" (Job. 19:25). Paul 
said, "I know whom I have believed, and am per- 
suaded that He is able to keep that which I have 
committed unto Him against that day" (2 Tim. 
1:12). 

Saint Stephen looked up through a shower of 
stones and with enamored trust and childlike confi- 
dence committed his emancipated spirit into the 
hands of the Redeemer of the world. 

We will now mention some of the reasons why 
Christians need confidence in each other. 

First, because it somehow limits and gauges 
their love one for the other. It is an unvarying 
rule in every clime and age of the world, that men 
love those most in whom they have the greatest 
confidence. This rule not only holds good among 
sinners, but among the holiest of men. Jesus so 
loved the world that He died for every human being, 
and yet He had a greater love for the Church. Again, 
He had more confidence in Peter, James and John 
than He did in the other nine disciples, and yet, 
of this select three. He had greater love for John 
than for the other two. Why? the question may be 
asked. Because John had the greatest love for 
Him. 

When people backslide and desert the cause of 
God, we cannot help losing a degree of confidence in 
them, neither can we help losing a measure of the 
love we had for them in former days when they 
walked with God. Of course we have the same 
amount of love for them that we have for other 
sinners, but cannot retain the same degree ^that we 



CONFIDENCE 25 

have for the saints of God. Whenever confidence is 
affected, love is also affected, and remains so until 
confidence is restored. 

Secondly, confidence is a preserver of Mutuality, 
Unity, and Fellowship. Satan is aware of this fact, 
therefore, he puts up a hard fight to destroy broth- 
erly confidence in the church. If one can show me 
a church where the members do not have confidence 
in each other, I will show him a church w^here there 
is bickering, contention, and strife all the time. 

Third, Confidence is a perpetuator of Mercy and 
Generosity, It becomes natural for us to sympathize 
and bestow gifts upon those whom we love and have 
confidence in; but on the other hand we are rather 
reluctant in sympathizing and giving to those in 
whom we have no confidence. Therefore, if Satan 
can succeed in destroying our confidence in the 
saints, he has succeeded in stopping the flow of 
Mercy and Generosity in our hearts, and also robbed 
us of the blessing of the ^'^Cheerful givers." 

A fourth reason why we need to retain confi- 
dence in each other, is that we may be a constant 
blessing one to the other. No matter how gifted a 
man may be to sing, pray, testify, exhort, or preach, 
he is of no help to those who have no confidence in 
him. He may be greatly blessed, and at times jump 
and shout, but this will not help things if confidence 
is lost. Nothing will mend matters but a restora- 
tion of confidence. 

I now mention a few of the multiplicity of meth- 
ods used by the devil in destroying confidence. 

First, by bringing in friction and misunderstand- 
ing. Misunderstanding is by no means a sin. How- 



26 SELECT FRUITS 

ever, it is a powerful factor in the hands of the devil 
to separate the saints and blight the work of God. 
It is possible for a misunderstanding to arise be- 
tween the holiest of men, notwithstanding that as 
a fact, if it is not quickly rectified and removed, it 
will work havoc and ruin as lasting as eternity. 
There arose a misunderstanding between Paul and 
Barnabas that affects the Church of God until this 
day. Therefore, brethren, do not let a misunder- 
standing exist between you for an hour, but get to- 
gether and talk the thing over, and clear it up in the 
mind of each other, so as to retain confidence. It 
is good, said one, to retain even the good-will of a 
dog. 

Secondly, the next method which Satan uses to 
destroy confidence, is to arouse suspicion and sur- 
mising in the minds of the saints, respecting the 
character of some brother or sister. Therefore, when 
accepted and given place in the heart, it becomes 
sin and separates the soul from God. ^'Charity 
thinketh no evil * * * believeth all things, hopeth 
all things" — Bible. 

A third method, used by the devil in destroying 
confidence, is seen when God's people strain the 
scripture and set up a false standard of piety, one 
which they do not, nor cannot live themselves. How- 
ever, they expect others to do so, and when they fail, 
they are censured and criticised by these false stand- 
ard-bearers. Mr. Wesley says, "To place the stand- 
ard of holiness too high crowds it out of the world 
just as quickly as it does to place it too low." 

Fourth, Satan's next successful method of wreck- 
ing confidence, is throwing a spell over God's people 



CONFIDENCE 27 

that turns them to "eyes." He makes them believe 
that they are endowed with the gift of discernment, 
and are commissioned of God to see every one's 
faults, and to set everybody right. Hence, all they 
seem to see from morning till night, at home or 
abroad, in every church, convention, or camp-meet- 
ing, is faults^ failures, compromisey unbelief, car- 
nality, luke-warmness, worldliness, tameness, etc. 
If what they say is true, there is not a 7'eal, clear- 
cut, red-hot, genuine holiness person in the world 
but themselves. They seem to forget that God has 
seven thousand that have not bowed their knees to 
Baal. They are not looking for good traits in other 
Christians, therefore, they do not find them. It is 
to be remembered that spiders find poison in the 
same blossoms that bees find honey. The secret is, 
the spider is only on the lookout for poison. Keader, 
are you like this spider? 



CHAPTER V. 



LIFERS RACE. 



"Let us run with patience the race that is set before us" 
(Heb. 12:1). 

The apostle here compares the Christian life to 
the running of a race. But we want to enlarge upon 
the thought, and compare the life of all men upon 
earth as running a great race ; i. e., we want to com- 
pare the earth to a great race course, and all men 
as racers. 

Let us notice a few interesting features about 
a race course, and the parties engaged therein. 1. 
The first thing men want to know concerning a race 
before they put their money in, is, what is the 
distance of the race. Sometimes the distance is 
only a half mile, sometimes three quarters, and 
sometimes a mile, a mile and a quarter. But this 
race on Time's race course, in which vou and I are 
running, is from the cradle to the grave. From Time 
to Eternity. This great race began with us on that 
day, that hour, when the news was proclaimed, that 
a man or woman, child, was born into the world. 
Yes, that moment when our eyes first opened and 
beheld the big sun, and the azure sky and looked into 
the sublime face of man. Ah! it was then, we en- 
tered this great race from Time to Eternity, and 
every day, every hour, every moment, every second 

28 



LIFERS RACE 29 

since that time, whether we work or play, whether 
we serve God or serve him not, we have been running 
with the rapidity of "time" toward eternity's goal. 

2. The next thing men want to know concerning 
a race is, what horses are to run, and how many. 
Sometimes there are two in a race, sometimes four 
five and so on. They all run, but only one wins. 
But in this great race from time to eternity, who are 
the racers? We answer, every man, woman and 
child, of all colors and all classes ; yea, rich and poor, 
high and low, great and small. We are all hourly 
running away from every toy of time, yes, from 
wealth, honor, fame and everything below. O ! how 
different men would conduct themselves upon earth, 
and what little interest they would take in time's 
fading toys, if they could fully realize the fact that 
they are hourly leaving everything below and ma- 
king rapid strides for eternity's goal. 

3. In this great race of life, who are the con- 
testing parties? For there can be no race without 
a contesting, i. e., some one striving to defeat us. 
Every son and daughter of Adam has three con- 
testing parties, viz., The World, The Flesh, The 
Devil. These three have consolidated, and are striv- 
ing to defeat every child of Adam. First, the 
World has invented new phases of pleasure, such 
as the dance, the skating rink, the beer gardens, the 
theatres, the excursion and a thousand others to de- 
feat the children of Adam in winning the crown of 
life. Secondly, the Flesh has agreed to induce 
them by inflaming their passions, intensifying their 
evil desires, play upon their evil natures, and making 
them gauge their appetites, etc. It has also fettered 



30 SELECT FRUITS 

them with habit and unnatural appetites, such as 
the cravings for tobacco, rum, opiates, etc., and thus 
defeat them from winning the prize. Thirdly, the 
Devil has planned to defeat them. 1. Through un- 
belief; by making them doubt the word of God, the 
power of the blood; doubt the divinity of Jesus; 
doubt the doctrine of hell and eternal punishment, 
doubt the doctrine of living without sin. 2. He has 
planned to defeat them through Procrastination, by 
telling them, ''there is plenty of time to become a 
Christian." 3. He has planned to defeat them 
through deception, i. e., through false religions, viz.. 
Christian Science, Mormonism, Universalism, Mil- 
lennial Dawnism, etc. O eternity-bound travel- 
er, who is in the lead with you in this great race? 
Is it God, or is it the World, the Flesh, and the Devil? 

4. The next thing to be considered in this great 
race, is what are the stakes? At the earthly race 
courses, they put up purses of five and ten thousand 
dollars, and there are only two winners, as there 
are only two prizes, -first and second. But in this 
race, the prize is Eternal life; a mansion in the sky, 
a fadeless crown, brighter than the sun; and an 
eternity of bliss ; and we can all be "fi^^st pri^e win- 
ners.'^ 

5. What if we lose? At the earthly race courses, 
if a man lose he only loses a few dollars, and has the 
opportunity of winning them back in the next race; 
but in this great race, we have our immortal souls 
at stake : with but one chance to win or lose. If we 
win, we go up forever ; if we lose, we sink forever in- 
to endless woe. O, my brother and friend, you can- 
not afford to lose ! You have too much at stake. 



LIFERS RACE 31 

6. The next interesting feature about a race is 
the grand stand finish, the last eighth of the mile; 
when the horses are nearing the wire. At which 
time every man, woman and child stands in almost 
breathless suspense, watching to see what horse w411 
be the winner. I now invite your attention across 
the black line of time; across the narrow rill of 
death; across the line of worlds, to the great grand- 
stand, at the bar of God, where this great race course 
ends. See God, the Father, Son and Holy Ghost; 
see all of the angelic host; see your friends and re- 
lations who have gained the shores of endless bliss; 
see all of this holy throng as they stand in awful 
suspense gazing to see if you are going to win heaven 
or hell. Yes, gazing to see if you are going to let the 
world, flesh and the devil outrun you or hinder 
you from winning the crown. On the other side of 
this great grand stand of life and glory, see all of 
the damned host from the underworld, and all of 
your lost relatives and friends, as they stand, 
shrouded with blackness and bickering flames, watch- 
ing in awful suspense to see if you will win or lose. 
O, friend! are you straining every point while here 
upon earth to win the immortal prize? 

The next thought is, how to win. The apostle 
tells us in the preceeding part of the verse, "Lay 
aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily 
beset us.'^ We are to lay aside every sin and doubt- 
ful thing. How careful we would be in the smallest 
matter if we knew we were to die to-morrow. We 
would not rest until we were as clear with God as a 
sunbeam, on all lines. Well, we should be just as 
careful for we may die before to-morrow. 



32 SELECT FRUITS 

The next thing necessary to win is to get properly 
shod. Sometimes a horse is hindered on account of 
not being properly shod. So it is in this race. Lots 
of souls fail to win the impaortal prize through not 
being properly shod (equipped). They equip them- 
selves with money, intellectuality, position, etc., but 
fail to get shod with the ^'New Birth" and holiness 
of heart. Hence they fail to gain the prize of eter- 
nal bliss. 

The next thing required to win is to take the 
''Inside track f' i. e., the safest side of every ques- 
tionahle or doubtful scripture in the Bible. People 
say sometimes, 'There may not be a literal lake of 
fire and brimstone." But friend, be sure to take the 
safest track, by repenting and getting saved, so if 
there should be one, you would be on the safe side. 
Again, people say, ''We can get to heaven without 
being sanctified wholly," but since the Bible says, 
"Without holiness no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. 
12 : 14 ) , it is safer to get the experience while here 
upon earth, so as to be sure of being right. 

The next thing necessary to win is to keep out 
of the "pochef — "the 'bunch'' A skillful rider never 
allows the horses on each side of him to g^t ahead 
and form an "A" and thus shut him in from passing 
them. This is called by race riders "putting him in 
the pocket" or "bunching him." So to win this 
spiritual race, you must keep out of the pocket of 
public opinion J i .e., being kept from obeying your 
God-given convictions because of public sentiment, 
or, on the other hand, practicing something that the 
Bible condemns, because the generality of preach- 
ers and church members are doing so. God says, 



LIFERS RACE 33 

"Follow not a multitude to do evil.'^ So if you 
would win, you must keep in the middle of the track 
of " Singularity^' all the way to eternity's goal. 

The next thing necessary to win is to ride with 
a tight rein. No race rider can ever win except 
he keeps a tight rein, thus to hold up his horse. We 
once heard of a racer suddenly slacking his reins 
and his horse went somersaults, thus killing himself 
and driver. O, how many dear ones have broken 
their spiritual necks in this race by suddenly slack- 
ing their reins (letting down), and passion and old 
appetites have revived and swept them off of their 
feet in a moment. O friend! don't think you are 
so well saved that you do not need to keep a tight 
rein of self -discipline, for 3^ou are in danger every 
hour. Therefore, you must ever "watch and fight 
and pray'^ For if Paul, with all of his gifts and 
graces, had to "keep his body under or else become 
a castaway," how much more careful ought you and 
I to be ; for we are much weaker than we think. O, 
let us "so run that we may obtain!" 



CHAPTER VI. 

HINDER ME not! 

"Hinder me not" (Gen. 24:56). 

These words were spoken by the servant of Abra- 
ham, when he had found the God-appointed bride 
for Isaac. Now Isaac here, as all Bible students 
know, is a type of Christ; and as this servant went 
into a far country, seeking out a wife for him, so 
is the Holy Spirit sent into the world to seek out 
a bride for Christ. And as this servant was to di- 
rect, and lead, the bride to Isaac, so the Holy Spirit 
is sent to pilot us through this world of snares, to 
the Groom of the sky. And He can only do this as 
you and I not only cooperate, but fully abandon 
ourselves to His leadings, and obey on all lines. So 
His voice comes to us through the words of this text, 
saying, ^^Hinder me not/' 

We will now notice some of His lines of work. 
His first is to make us feel our need — yes, feel our 
need. And this He faithfully does, to every man 
and woman on earth, yea, both saint and sinner. 
Jesus said, ''And when he is come. He will reprove 
the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judg- 
ment" (John 16 : 8) . Notwithstanding, we may throw 
the conviction off, and try to stout it out ; nevertheless 
He makes us all feel our needs keenly. For instance, 
an unsaved man comes into a meeting; though he 

34 



HINDER ME NOT ! 35 

may be careless, and have no thought of God what- 
ever, before he gets out the Holy Spirit will in some 
way make him feel the need of the Savior. Again, 
if a Christian man does not realize his need of a 
clean heart, the Holy Spirit will make him feel it 
even though he has to give him a stubborn horse, or a 
cross employe, or a stupid servant, or a kicking cow. 
Yes, at some point He will not only point out his in- 
ward trouble, but will make him feel really the need 
of deliverance; and after he has done this. He can 
proceed no farther in getting us to heaven, until 
we get that newly revealed need supplied. So, 
brother, friend, if the Spirit has shown, and made 
you feel, your need of some advance step in God, 
He cannot go any farther in preparing you for hea- 
ven until you measure up to that need. So He is 
saying to you through this lesson, "Hinder me not/' 
Eemember, He is hindered and cannot do one thing 
more, until you move up to that revealed need. You 
may consent to do a thousand other things, but that 
will not suffice. You must do that one thing, or else 
give up your hope of heaven, for His hands are tied 
(so to speak) until you do that one thing. 

2. His next office is to break the power of sin, 
and disconnect you from every evil habit, and make 
you ^^free indeed/' However, He cannot do this with- 
out your cooperation. He first condemns the sin, 
or the habit, by letting light on it and causing you 
to know the thing is wrong. Then He can go no 
farther until you give up and renounce it; then He 
proceeds to take away the desire for the thing. For 
an instance, a man may be addicted to the use of 
tobacco, and he may be in a community where they 



36 SELECT FRUITS 

have no light on it, and don't know it is wrong to 
use it. Hence he may come to the altar and get con- 
verted and still go on using his tobacco for a week 
or so. Now there may not be a man in fifty miles 
of that place who preaches against the use of tobac- 
co, but the Holy Spirit will in some way speak to 
that man and make him know that it is wrong to 
use it. Then he will wait for that man to cooperate 
with Him, by taking the tobacco out of his pocket 
and throwing it away. Noto this is the man^s part of 
the matter. And this the Spirit will never do. But 
if the man cooperates, by throwing the tobacco away, 
and taking a firm stand against using it again, the 
Holy Spirit will proceed to destroy the appetite. 

3. His next business is to bring every Christian 
up to the standard of New Testament purity. We 
hear folks pray sometimes, ^'Lord, make me purer, 
give me a purer heart,'' etc., and at the same time 
they are bitterly opposed to sanctification and holi- 
ness. They seem to be blind to the fact that the 
standard of purity for entering heaven is laid down 
in the New Testament, and that is holiness of heart 
(Matt. 5:8; Heb. 12:14; Col. 1:21, 22; Rev. 21:7), 
which means to be cleansed from every unholy trait 
and temper which was not in the heart of Jesus 
Christ, for He is our pattern, our standard of purity 
for heaven; anything below the purity of Jesus will 
bar us out of heaven. We read in 1 John 3 : 3, ''And 
everyone that hath this hope in him, purifieth him- 
self even as He [Jesus] is pure." We also read in 
Eph. 5 : 26, "Christ loved the church, and gave Him- 
self for it; that He might sanctify, and cleanse it, 
with the washing of water by the word, that JEe 



HINDER MB NOT ! 37 

might present it unto Himself a glorious church, not 
having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that 
it should be holy and without 'blemish/' So, friend, 
if there is any unholy trait or temper in your heart, 
that was not in Jesus Christ, you are not ready 
to enter heaven. However, the Holy Spirit is striv- 
ing daily to get you up to that standard, by letting 
you hear holiness preached, and by letting you read 
about it in the Bible, and other books, and also by 
letting you see some one live it; but He can go no 
farther with it until you cooperate with him by 
seeking and meeting the conditions of the experience, 
and then He will proceed to work the things in your 
heart by the blood of Jesus, and then take up His 
abode in your heart. Praise God! O, friend, '^hi7i- 
der Him notP' 

4. His next office is to live out through you "New 
Testament piety." All that the generality of Chris- 
tians aim at these days, is to keep from getting un- 
der condemnation, and get to heaven when they die. 
They look back at the life of Enoch, and the 
holy men of old, with amazement, thinking they 
were specially favored of God, above ordinary peo- 
ple. But, friend, it is your and my privilege, and 
not only our privilege but our indispensable duty, 
to live as holy a life as any man ever lived upon 
earth. Jesus was our pattern and we are to copy 
His life, i. e., walk and live as holy and as uprightly 
in all things as He lived while upon earth. What 
saith the scripture? "He that saith he abideth in 
Him, ought himself also so to walk, even as He 
walked^' (1 John 2:6). Again, we read in 1 John 
4 : 17, "Herein is our love made perfect, that we may 



38 SELECT FRUITS 

have boldness in the day of judgment ; because, as 
He iSy so are ive in this world.'' Again we read in 
St. John 12 : 26, ''If any man serve me, let him follow 
[imitate] me." "Be ye followers [imitators] of 
God, as dear children" (Eph. 5:1). 

So, friend, this is the life the Holy Spirit is try- 
ing to live through you daily; but He cannot suc- 
ceed without your cooperation. Now if you are not 
obeying and cooperating with Him on every line, 
your preparation for heaven is at a standstill until 
you do that last thing He has bid you do. He only 
tells you to do one thing at a time, hence your failing 
to obey at one point stops the whole work. O, ^^hin- 
der Him not!" 

5. His next desire is to bring you up to the 
standard of New Testament potver and usefulness. 
O, what a mistake the Christians of these days have 
made, in thinking that the days of miracles are over ! 
God says, "It shall come to pass in the last days, 
I will pour out my spirit on all flesh" (Acts. 2: 17), 
and in the 19th verse, "I will show wonders in heaven 
above, and signs in the earth beneath." And we 
will agree that these are the last days. Jesus said, 
"These signs shall follow them that believe; in my 
name shall they cast out devils ; they shall speak with 
new tongues. They shall take up serpents; and if 
they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; 
they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall re- 
cover" (Mark. 17:17, 18). Now the Holy Ghost 
would work in these last days on this line if He 
could get the man and woman who would not hinder 
Him. 

We now proceed to mention some ways people 



HINDER ME NOT ! 39 

hinder the Holy Spirit. 1. The fear of man, that 
bringeth a snare. How many precious souls hinder 
God on this line. 2. A failure to walk in all the 
light and promptings of the Spirit. 3. Limiting 
God, i. e., setting a stake for Him and calling any 
manifestations teyond their stake fanaticism. 4. 
Again we hinder Him by failing to readily obey 
His leadings, His advice, His checks, His reproofs. 
If He leads us to private prayer and meditation, 
we should promptly obey. If He advises us to re- 
frain from some conduct, or lay aside some other 
needless adornments, or make some confession, we 
should promptly obey. If He checks us, when in the 
act of making some light or foolish remark, we 
should refrain from it immediately. If He finds oc- 
casion to reprove us on any line we should not 
cause Him to have to do so the second time. 5. 
Again we hinder Him many times by giving vent to 
our appetites and passions, ^o man can retain a 
close walk with God and unduly indulge in any line 
of intemperance. O, how many holy souls are shorn 
of their power on these lines. 6. Again, we hinder 
Him by not submitting to let Him fully and com- 
pletely crucify the self life. O, how people are hin- 
dered from making God-intended progress by foster- 
ing and petting and humoring the old self life. They 
patch it up, and make excuses for the manifestations 
of pride, anger, impatience, etc., when they should 
get down before God in old-time earnestness, with 
fasting and prayer, and not let up until the Holy 
Ghost makes an end of old self, so that they will 
be thoroughly cured from shallowness, lightness, 
looseness, lustful stirrings, anger and impatient feel- 



40 SELECT FRUITS 

ings ; and from wavering, doubting, faultfinding and 
from holding onto worldly dress, such as ribbons, 
laces, jewelry, feathers, silks and costly adornments. 
O, reader, do heed the voice of the Spirit now speak- 
ing to thy soul, saying: 
"Hinder Me not!" 



CHAPTER VII. 



THE MINISTRY OF PRAYER 



"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the 
Spirit" (Eph. 6:18). 

It is not only astonishing, but appalling, how 
few Christians heed the divine call to a life of pray- 
er. There is no great difficulty to get them to heed 
the missionary call, the call to the ministry, etc., 
but when it comes to the unpopular, secluded life of 
prayer, there are only a few adherents. 

The call to prayer is universal ; it not only comes 
to a few here and there (as does the call to the min- 
istry), but to every child of God. Hear what saith 
the Lord: ''Men ought always to pray and not to 
faint" (Luke 18:1); "Pray without ceasing" (1 
Thess. 5:17). 

Prayer is the propelling force by which the child 
of God stems the tide of sin and Satan. If the whole 
truth was known, neglecting to pray is the chief 
cause of every backslider being in sin to-day. It is 
astonishing beyond measure what power God has 
given His children through prayer. Think of puny, 
mortal man being invested with the power to pray 
the moon and sun to a standstill, lock up heaven for 
three years and a half, bring torrents of fire from the 
sky, conquer every devil in hell, astonish angels, 
change the mind and plan of Jehovah, and bring all 

41 



42 SELECT FRUITS 

the powers of the Great White Throne to his aid 
at a moment's notice, if need be. 

Let us observe a few things necessary to suc- 
ceed in the prayer life. 

I. We must acquire an excessive relish for 
prayer. It is astonishing how few Christians there 
are who really love to pray. To verify this state- 
ment, all one has to do is to visit the weekly prayer- 
meeting, the cottage and the early Sabbath prayer- 
meeting. Instead of finding fifty or sixty present, 
you will only find ten or twelve. Another indication 
of the lack of love for prayer is when people call 
at your home ; they can sit and converse about world- 
ly things for hours, but as soon as you suggest having 
prayer, they look at the watch and begin making 
excuses to go. The question may arise here, "How 
is this excessive relish to be obtained?" We an- 
swer: 

1. It is obtained by promptly obeying the 
Spirit's call to prayer, and entertaining that amount 
of it which we already have. There are times, both 
in the day and at night, when the blessed Holy 
Spirit infuses into the heart a sweet drawing, con- 
straining desire for secret communion. He thus 
deals with every child of God, but many of them, 
sad to say, do not promptly heed His voice, but defer 
the matter until they are through doing this or that, 
hence, when they do get ready, that sweet, drawing 
influence is gone, and though they may go through 
a form of prayer, yet they fail to strike through and 
get hold of God. 

2. The next thing required in pursuing this ex- 
cessive relish is, when we enter our closets to pray, 



THE MINISTRY OF PRAYER 43 

we must leave every worldly care and thought on 
the outside, and consider ourselves in the immediate 
presence of God. A very small thing can hinder us 
in secret prayer. Sometimes if you have a kettle on 
the stove boiling the devil will use that as a means 
to hinder you from having your mind wholly on God, 
for fear it will burn; so when you go to pray, set 
the kettle off the fire. 

3. The next thing necessary is to redeem every 
spare moment for prayer. It would surprise you, 
how much time can be redeemed for prayer on this 
line. One might say right here, '^I don't always feel 
like praying," but if you will go right against your 
feeling and use every spare moment in prayer for 
one week, you will be astonished at the spiritual 
progress you will make. Another way of redeem- 
ing time for prayer is to occasionally devote a whole 
night to prayer. Jesus did so, and many of the fath- 
ers, who had great power with God and with the 
people. 

II. The next suggestion is, how to hold newly 
attained ground. 

After we have learned the art of entertaining the 
spirit of prayer, and redeeming every idle moment 
for prayer, the soul reaches a stage where it is all 
illuminated and thrilled with heavenly electricity, 
and is daily swept on into God, by an almost resist- 
less current of prayer, and no creature or circum- 
stance can get it out of this place. If it gets out it 
must get out itself. Satan is aware of this fact, 
therefore he follows a man of prayer more intently 
than any being on earth, trying to g^t him to crack a 
joke, tell a funny story, or do some unholy thing, and 



44 SELECT FRUITS 

thus lose that place of unbroken communion with 
his Maker. Therefore he must be more watchful, and 
step more surely than any other creature on earth, 
ever remembering that miwh prayer requires much 
watching. 

III. We next call your attention to some effects 
the prayer life has on its possessor. 

1. He is in such union with God, and so sur- 
charged with the Holy Ghost power, that his pres- 
ence, without uttering a word, is a constant reproof 
to sinners, worldly church members and tame holi- 
ness professors. They feel uneasy in his presence. 
If you are troubled with a host of unsaved relatives 
and neighbors, visiting you on Sunday and keeping 
you from meeting to feed and entertain them, you 
have surely let down and lost the spirit of prayer. 
Hence, that is why you can sit and talk with them 
for hours on the topics of the day — politics, real 
estate, fashion and a thousand other nonsensical 
things. 

2. The next effect it has upon him is, he is so 
pure and holy sensitive that he not only gets bur- 
dened for the unsaved and unsanctified, but quickly 
detects and feels the least unfaithfulness or compro- 
mise in the saints of God. 

3. His spiritual vision is so clarified, and his 
ears so acquainted with the dialect and harmony 
of heaven, that he can detect the shrewdest hypo- 
crite, no matter how much he prays, shouts or testi- 
fies. The keen-eyed man of God detects the bleat- 
ing sheep and lowing ox. Jesus said, "My sheep hear 
my voice and I know them" (John 10:27). 

4. The last effect we take time to mention here 



THE MINISTRY OF PRAYER 45 

is the ^'double vision^' experience. We read in Kev. 
4 : 8, ''And the four beasts had each of them six wings 
[which symbolized prayer and ascension] and they 
were full of eyes within." The thought expressed 
here is, they were fortified on every side, and it was 
utterly impossible to approach them unobserved. 
So it is with the man of prayer ; he can see the past, 
present and future. He is so well versed in heavenly 
astronomy, that no storm of temptation, sickness, 
sorrow, or death can come to his home without his 
foreseeing it afar off. Hence, in being ^^forwarned/' 
he is ''forearmed^' Many times we have heard peo- 
ple, who have lived on the watchtower with God, 
make such remarks as, ''I feel something coming!" 
"Something is going to happen !" "Some one is going 
to die!" etc., and it invariably came to pass. 

Now, for one to see any great distance in the 
natural world, he must ascend to some elevated 
point, so his view will not be obstructed. So it is 
in the spiritual world — if one would have the "four- 
faced" and "full of eyes" experience. To see every 
way, we must outstrip every earthly object (by 
mighty prevailing prayer, faith and fasting), and 
mount up and perch on perfection's lofty summit, 
where we live on earth and in heaven at the same 
time. 

O, who will heed the call to a life of prayer? 



CHAPTER VIII. 



THE GREAT SALVATION 



"How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?" 
(Heb. 2:3). 

It will do no violence to the text to cause it to 
read as follows: "If we neglect so great salvation, 
how shall we escape?" The word ''Salvation," used 
here by the apostle, means more than mere deliver- 
ance from sin. It is used to express the whole re- 
demption scheme. 

Men sometimes make discoveries of new medi- 
cines, new methods, remedies, etc., and advertise 
them to be the great this or the great that. Some- 
times they prove serviceable and sometimes they 
do not. But God has produced this, and has adver- 
tised it to be the ''Great Salvation," a cure for every 
malady of the human race, both morally and phy- 
sically, and it has stood the test for nearly six thou- 
sand years and proved to do even more than He 
said. Let us notice why it should be called the 
"Great Salvation." 

First : It is a remedy wrought out by God, that, 
if its conditions are met and everything properly 
complied with, will take the vilest sinner in all the 
land and wash him white as snow, and make him a 
saint in less than five minutes. 

Second : The next sense in which it is the "Great 

46 



THE GREAT SALVATION 47 

Salvation" is, that it is a remedy prepared by God, 
that, if its conditions are properly met, will cleanse 
the heart of every justified soul in the world from 
every atom of inbred sin, and will fill them with 
the Holy Ghost and fire; thus making them just as 
clean (in five minutes) as they will be when they 
will have been in heaven a million years. O won- 
derful Salvation! 

Third : The next sense in which it is the "Great 
Salvation" is, that it is a remedy, prepared by God, 
that lays hold of man, the once sinful and dis- 
obedient rebel, and makes him a co-laborer with 
Deity, and thus invests him with power to stop the 
sun, lock up heaven, pray down fire, heal the sick, 
cast out devils, raise the dead ; yea, and do all things 
through Christ which strengtheneth him (Phil. 
4:13). 

A fourth sense in which it is the '^Great Salva- 
tion" is, that it is a method wrought out by God to 
restore to lost man, upon earth, the Edenic state of 
soul happiness and internal Miss. However, He has 
made a little change in the location. When He 
created man, He made the Garden of Eden and 
placed man in it; but under this ''Great Salvation" 
era He has placed Eden in the man, which is far 
better. Hallelujah ! 

A fifth sense in which this is the ''Great Salva- 
tion" — it is a remedy wrought by God which, if ac- 
cepted by man, will rob death and the grave of all 
their sleeping victims and restore them to us again, 
glorified and immortal. 

The next sense in which it is to be considered 
the "Great Salvation" is, because God has planned, 



48 SELECT FRUITS 

through it, not only to restore man to a holy, glori- 
fied state, but also to make him co-equal with His 
Son upon the throne. 

"How amazing, God's compassion, 
That so vile a worm should prove 

This stupendous bliss of heaven 
This unmeasured wealth of love." 



CHAPTER IX. 



LOVE FOR THE LORD 



"I will love thee, O Lord, my strength!" (Psa. 18:1). 

The psalmist found the secret of rendering a joy- 
ful service unto the Lord in all circumstances of 
life. Truly, there is nothing else that will equip a 
soul for following the Lord Jesus through His life of 
reproach; through Gethsemane's lonely garden; 
through Pilate's scornful judgment hall, and to 
Calvary's cruel summit, but divine love. As it re- 
quires more than fancy to induce the bride to aban- 
don her home of plenty, and go to share a life of 
tears and toil w^ith the husband of her choice, so 
does it to become a real follower of the Lord Jesus 
and serve Him not only when the sun is shining, and 
the multitudes crying, ^'Hosanna to the son of Da- 
vid !" but when the sun of success veils its face, and 
the brethren are forsaking and the multitudes cry- 
ing, "Away with Him! Away with Him!" 

It w^as this love that caused Paul to leave a life 
of honor and count all things but loss for the excel- 
lency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus. It was this 
love which caused the martyrs to go rejoicing to the 
stake, and shout the praises of God in the flames; 
choosing to die for Jesus rather than deny their 
Lord and live. 

It was this all-consuming flame of love that 

49 



50 SELECT FRUITS 

caused John Bunyan to remain twelve years in the 
old Bedford jail. It was this that caused our fore- 
fathers to sacrifice friends, comfort, reputation, and 
all under the sun, and take an uncompromising stand 
against false religion, secret societies, human slavery, 
worldly dress, divorce marriages, etc. 

When we have this heavenly flame glowing in our 
hearts no trial is counted too hard, no cross too 
heavy, no way too dark, no burden too great to bear 
for Him whom our soul loveth. But it makes us 
cherish the cross, and run in the way of duty, no 
matter how dark and lonely the way, rejoicing that 
we are counted worthy to suffer for our Lord and 
Master. O, hallelujah! 

When this love is in our heart, God becomes our 
highest delight ; more than any other object on earth 
or in heaven. He fills the whole domain of our 
life, like a new-found lover; like the sun, mantling 
the whole heavens. He is the first in our thoughts 
at morn, and fills our mind the livelong day. We 
see Him everywhere we look, working '^all things for 
our good," both losses and gains; sickness and 
health ; enemies and friends ; yes, working all things, 
in heaven and earth, for our good. Hence we love 
nothing but what He loves, and that which leads to 
Him. The language of our soul is this continually : 
''Whom have I in heaven but Thee? and there is 
none upon earth that I desire beside Thee" (Psa. 
73:25). All of our thoughts either begin or end 
in Him. And love's flame, like holy incense, burns 
on the altar of our heart, night and day ; thus making 
our whole life, yea, every action, one unbroken 
stream of praise and adoration. Hence we live in 



LOVE FOR THE LORD 51 

an unclouded realm (unknown by doubts and fears), 
where the sun never goes down and the moon never 
withdraws herself, where the flowers of peace and 
love unfading bloom; and the perennial spring of 
holy joy doth flow forever. Hence we can sing with 
the poet: 

"Now heaven has begun below, 

In this glad heart of mine ; 
Earth's darkest den seems all aglow 

With love and light divine." 

Again he says : 

"My joys are inexpressible, 

Increasing ev'ry day; 
I'm filled with love immeasurable, 

And almost blest away !" 



CHAPTER X. 



THE FIRE OF GOD 



"The fire of the Lord fell" (1 King 18:38) ; "The fire 
shall ever be burning upon the altar ; it shall never go out" 
(Lev. 6:13). 

Fire in the Old Testament is a symbol of the 
presence and the holiness of God. The old Jewish 
altar was a type of the human heart. 

The only way an ancient Jew knew his offering 
was accepted, when the priest offered it, was by the 
fire of God coming upon the sacrifice and consuming 
it. The Jew was not satisfied with just presuming 
his sacrifice acceptable, but he did not rest contented 
unless the fire came upon it. This caused the trouble 
between Cain and Abel. The fire of God came upon 
Abel's sacrifice, but did not upon Cain's. They may 
have had the same size and same kind of altar ; they 
may have built their altars on the same place, etc. 
It was not simply the form and size of the altar that 
made the difference with God, but it was the kind 
and condition of the sacrifice. 

Now in those days every man had to bring his 
offering to the priest and have him offer it, but in 
this dispensation every individual is his own priest, 
and must do his or her own sacrificing. Now we are 
not to present bulls and goats and doves, etc., but 
we are to present ourselves, soul body and spirit 

52 



THE FIRE OF GOD 53 

to God, to be always His. Now our question to-day 
is, not what church you belong to, or how many times 
you have been baptized, nor what ecclesiastical posi- 
tion you hold, hut is the fire of God falling on your 
life? 

Now as we examine the old sacrificial law (which 
holds good in the spirit yet), let us see if it is still 
being complied with in our lives; if it is not, then 
we can see why the fire is not falling on our sacri- 
fice and kept burning daily. Notice: 

1. The sacrifice had to be ivithout Memish 
(Lev. 1: 10). If it had the least blemish it was re- 
jected and the fire would not come down upon it. 
Now let us spiritualize these blemishes. Is your life 
being kept free from all backbiting, all tale-bearing, 
all sowing discord among the brethren? Is your 
heart being kept clear from all secret criticism, i. e., 
imagining uncharitable things about your brother 
or sister, etc? Is your conversation being kept free 
from all harshness, all scolding, all extravagance, 
all lightness and all guile? Are you swinging clear 
before God and the bar of conscience on all lines of 
Christian living? If not, that is why the fire is 
not falling. 

2. The sacrifice had to be a dead animal, i. e., 
it had to be brought to the priest alive and he had to 
kill it, since he could not get a living ox or a living 
goat on the altar. The sacrifice had to be passive 
in the hands of the priest. Think of the priest try- 
ing to offer a live ox on the altar ! Think of the kick- 
ing and lowing and snorting and raving there would 
be in the temple. It would take ten or twelve men 
to handle a live ox, i. e., to get him on the altar. So 



54 SELECT FRUITS 

it is with us — the self life has to be crucified, dead, 
DEAD^ DEAD ! so that we are passive in the hands 
of God, like the clay in the hands of the potter, so 
that He can send us any place, deny us of anything, 
make any demand on us, and we will humbly sub- 
mit, no matter how it will cause people to laugh at 
us or ignore us. No matter how the world will dis- 
honor us, we will remain dead to its frowns, scoffs, 
honor or sneers — 

"So dead that no desire will rise, 
To appear good, or great or wise, 
In any but my Savior's eyes." 

Now, reader, is this condition of the sacrifice ever 
being met in your life? If not, there is no marvel 
that the fire is not burning on the altar of your heart. 
If you have become alive to the love of the world's 
honor, pomp, pride, show, customs, methods, etc. ; 
again, if you have so become alive as to defend your- 
self, and shun the reproach of the cross of Christ, 
seeking a good reputation in the opinion of the 
world; and are being swayed by public sentiment, 
popularity, fame, money, etc., you are out of the 
royal way of complete self-abandonment to God, 
hence He cannot bless you until you return to the 
old path. 

3, The sacrifice had to be cut in pieces, i. e., 
divided in half (Lev. 1:12). This was the ancient 
method of covenant-making between two parties. 
They would kill a heifer and cut it in half, and lay 
it on the ground, possibly two feet apart, and both 
parties would pass between the two halves of the 
heifer, thus binding the agreement. God used some- 



THE FIRE OF GOD 55 

thing similar to this with Abraham when He made 
a covenant with him (Gen. 15: 9). Now every man 
or woman who gets saved or sanctified, has to make 
some covenants with God, that they will do this or 
do that; that they will suffer this or suffer that, etc. 

So let us now examine our covenant, our vows, 
and see if they are still being paid ; and if not, why 
not ? Then we can see why the fire has ceased to fall. 
You promised God to walk cheerfully in all His re- 
vealed will, from the altar to your dying day, no mat- 
ter how it crossed your own. Are you doing so? You 
promised God to live a separated life from all world- 
liness, and carefully guard against all classes of 
lying, all forms of dishonesty, all forms of Sabbath 
desecration, all useless adornments, all doubtful 
and questionable things and practices. Are you 
still paying this vow? If not, this is where the 
trouble lies. 

4. The altar had to be kept in repair. Now per- 
haps your altar of private and family devotion is 
torn down, and you are now too busy to stop and 
have any amount of private prayer; or perhaps you 
are too full of home cares to read and pray with 
the children daily. Perhaps you are too busy to at- 
tend any prayer-meetings and mid-week services, but 
just attend on Sunday. Perhaps you do not take 
up your cross and testify or pray in the meetings 
as in former days. If this is the case, your altar 
needs to be rebuilt, and that with twelve stones 
(1 Kings 18:31), viz.: 1. "Firmness"; 2. "Prompt- 
ness"; 3. "Sincerity"; 4. "Free from hurry"; 5. 
"Orderly"; 6. "Constantly"— every day; 7. "Uni- 
versally" — everywhere, at home or abroad ; 8. "Cour- 



56 SELECT FRUITS 

ageously" — free from fear of the neighbors ; 9. "Obe^ 
diently" — whenever the Spirit bids ; if it is fifty times 
a day ; 10. "Faithfully" — expecting fruit therefrom ; 
11. "With a single eye" — as to God, not to be heard 
or seen of man; 12. "With Delight" — ^not as a task 
but as your greatest earthly delight. 

Now, dear one, if you adjust yourself to these 
few hints we are sure you will have all of the fire 
you can handle. Praise God! 



CHAPTER XI. 

DO CHRISTIANS COMMIT SIN? 

''Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin" (1 
John 3:9). 

The sin question seems quite a problem to-day to 
the preachers and church members everywhere, but I 
am glad that we have the unerring Word for our 
guide. 

The preachers and leaders are teaching the people 
nearly everywhere that it is impossible to live with- 
out sin. But it is to be remembered we are not to be 
judged at that ''great day" by w^hat the preachers 
or class-leaders say, but by the Word of God (John 
12:48). 

Jesus says in John 5 : 39 : "Search the scriptures 
[Bible], for in them ye think ye have eternal life; 
and these are they that testify of me." Just as if 
He had said : "Search the Bible, for in it you will 
find the conditions of getting to heaven." 

Now, we will notice the character spoken of in 
the text : ^'He that is horn of God doth not commit 
sin." How dare any man or woman contradict the 
great God? This means all Christians, for it says, 
'^whosoever is horn of God.'' He who has not been 
born of God is no Christian at all, but right here is 
where the majority of the opposers of "living with- 
out sin" are found. They have only reformed and 

67 



58 SELECT FRUITS 

joined the church (including preachers), but know 
nothing of the ''new birth." The other class of op- 
posers are usually people who once enjoyed grace, 
but have backslidden; therefore, they fight living 
clean and living without sin. If you ask them if 
they had to stop sinning to get saved, they will say 
''Yes." Well, if they had to stop sinning to get 
God's grace; after they get it, it would be absurd to 
think they could keep it at a less cost than they had 
to pay to get it. Col. 2:6. O, how sad for intelli- 
gent men and women to be so blinded by the devil! 

It was Jesus' only purpose in coming to the 
world, to save His people from their sins (not in 
them). Matt. 1:21. If God told you to " go in 
peace and sin no more," what did He mean by giving 
^ou~this command? Would He play with His crea- 
tures? You may say, "Well, the Bible says 'we are 
all born in sin.' " So it does, but you will find in 
John 3:7: "Ye must be born again." "He that is 
born of God doth not commit sin." Of course the 
natural man will commit sin, without grace, but 
when he is born of water and of the Spirit he doth 
not commit sin. He has the power to sin if he 
wants to, but if he sins he loses his grace and in 
that moment becomes a sinner, just as Adam did. 
He becomes "of the devil" (a child of the devil). 
1 John 3 : 8. 

You say the Bible says, "Man is as liable to sin 
as the sparks fly upward," but it doesn't say any 
such thing. It says, "Man is born unto trouble as the 
sparks fly upward" (Job. 5: 7). 

You may say, "Well, Jesus told the Pharisees, 
when they were condemning the woman that was 



DO CHRISTIANS COMMIT SIN? 59 

found in adultery, that he who was without sin 
should cast the first stone, so all of them went out 
and left her and Jesus alone, as none of them were 
without sin." So they did; but what did Jesus say 
to the woman? He said to her: ^'Neither do 1 
condemn thee ; go, and sin no more/^ Now, whether 
the Pharisees were without sin or not, Jesus told 
her to sin no more. 

You may say, the Bible says, "There is none good, 
no, not one; they are all gone out of the way." So 
it does, but let us notice the class of people that are 
spoken of in this text. God is speaking of the nat- 
ural man without grace. Notice the passage, Kom. 
3:12-18. Here is the class of people spoken of: 
"Their throat is an open sepulcher; with their 
tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps 
is under their lips : whose mouth is full of cursing 
and bitterness; their feet are swift to shed blood; 
destruction and misery are in their ways; and the 
way of peace have they not known; there is no fear 
of God before their eyes." Now, this is the class of 
people that are "none of them good." This does not 
mean God's true children. John 17 : 15 ; Acts 26 : 18 ; 
1 John 2 : 26. 

You may say, "Paul said, when he would do good 
evil was present with him, and the good he would, 
he did not, but the evil he would not, that he did. 
Well, Paul was not speaking of himself in his Chris- 
tian experience, but of himself and others when 
under the law. Paul begins the seventh chapter of 
Romans thus : "Know ye not, brethren (for I speak 
to them that know the law) " — ^just as if he had said : 
"I speak to you who know how it was with us when 



60 SELECT FRUITS 

we were under the law." What kind of a Christian 
would we be, if we went along the street and saw 
a suit of clothes in front of a store, and the devil 
(the evil one) would say, "Take that suit," and we 
would take it, and our excuse would be, "Well, I 
did not want to steal the clothes, but evil was present 
and I could not do the good I would." Or suppose 
you come home from your daily work and your wife 
displease you, and the tempter would say, "Give her 
a good thrashing," and you would obey him, then 
your excuse would be, "Well, I would have done 
good but evil was present and I could not do the 
good I would." Is this walking like Christ walked, 
as we are commanded to do? 1 John 2:6. Is this 
being "blameless and harmless, the sons of God with- 
out rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse 
nation, among whom we shine as lights in the 
world?" (Phil. 2:15). 

You may say: "Well, the Bible says, 'If we say 
that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the 
truth is not in us' " (1 John 1:8). Well, so it does ; 
but you did not quote all of the text. You should 
have begun at the seventh verse, which reads like 
this : "If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, 
we have fellowship one with another, and the blood 
of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin.^' 
But if one would say, "I am good enough, I don't 
need the blood of Jesus to cleanse me, I have been 
brought up moral and good," this is the man that 
is spoken of in the eighth verse. But if a man will 
be honest and acknowledge that he is lost without 
Jesus, and will say : "Yes, I need the blood of Jesus," 
and will confess his sins, as the ninth verse reads, 



DO CHRISTIANS COMMIT SIN? 61 

whj, he inherits the promise, "If we confess our 
sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and 
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Now, I 
would like to ask. If you were forgiven all of your sins 
and cleansed from all unrighteousness, would you 
not be WITHOUT sin? Why do you fight living with- 
out sin, since you see it is the will of God that you 
be without it? You pray in the Lord's prayer: "De- 
liver us from evil." If this would take place you 
would be without sin, for evil is sin. So if you don't 
believe you can be saved from your sins, don't pray 
the Lord's prayer any more. 

So, friend, he that is a Christian does not com- 
mit sin. A man that is a Christian lives just as 
clean and upright as Jesus lived. You may say, "I 
know the time and place where I was converted and 
born again, and yet I sin." I don't doubt that you 
were converted, but this one thing I say, no matter 
how clear your conversion was, or how long you 
have been converted, or how much you have 
preached ; the moment you commit one sin you are as 
much a sinner in the sight of God as the worst man 
in town. God says, "Sin is the transgression of the 
law" (1 John 3:4). He does not say how much sin, 
whether an ounce or a ton, but ^^sin.^^ How large 
was the spot of leprosy to be on a man, in ancient 
days, before he was pronounced a leper? He was 
as much a leper with a spot the size of a 25-cent piece 
as he who was covered with it. 

So all of God's children live without sinning. 
They live clean, pay their debts, live peaceably at 
home and abroad. In short, they live, walk, talk 
and act like Jesus. 1 John 4 : 17. So, friend, if 



62 SELECT FRUITS 

you are sinning, stop professing to be a Christian. 
''He that committeth sin is of the devil" (1 John 

3:8). 



CHAPTEK XII. 

THE PIOUS TRAMP 

There's one I've met on Time's drear plain 

I do not care to meet again. 

He's not of infidelic stamp. 

But better known as "Pious Tramp." 

He's seen in almost ev'ry town, 

But most where Christian folks are found; 

Around the pious and the best, 

To sleep and eat and patience test. 

It's 'gainst his views to have a home, 
A wife and something of his own ; 
But goes from house to house each day 
To eat, talk good and leave no pay. 

He don't believe in "creed" or "sect," 
But claims to be the "Bride's Elect." 
He goes to church to fight and spar 
But gives no alms for rent or fire. 

Convention time and on camp-ground 
This tramp on "Gratis" list is found: 
"I met ill luck," you'll hear him say, 
"And where I worked was robbed of pay.'* 

He don't believe in giving alms, 
But says, "trust fully on God's arms." 
He borrows here, he borrows there, 
And says it came by answered pray'r. 

63 



64 SELECT FRUITS 

"I love the truth," you'll hear him say, 
But not enough his share to pay. 
He comes around for what he'll get, 
And till you dine, all day he'll sit. 

If boarding him, you get behind, 
He with your love some fault will find. 
He'll tell the neighbors all abroad 
That you are false and don't love God. 



CHAPTER XIII. 



WALKING IN THE LIGHT 



"But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we 
have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus 
Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). 

We often wonder why souls are run aground in 
their experience and dried up. We see preachers and 
workers who at one time made earth and hell trem- 
ble. They preached and prayed in the power of the 
Holy Ghost. Those very workers have become dead, 
dry and powerless. And yet they seem to be living- 
clean, upright lives. 

What is the trouble? Does God only give us 
power and unction in the early part of our exper- 
iences, and then take it away from us later on ? 

No, the trouble is this — they fail to ^'walk in the 
light.'^ 

It is to be remembered that we are saved on con- 
ditions, ''If we walk in the light'' 

So we only keep saved as we meet the required 
conditions. 

You may ask, ^'What is light?" 

Light is that which makes ''manifest" — that 
which reveals new duties, new phases of the Will 
of God. 

How is it obtained? 

It comes in divers ways; sometimes through the 



66 SELECT FRUITS 

preacher, sometimes through a testimony, sometimes 
through a religious book or paper, etc. 

Light always calls one to more sacrifice, more 
self-abandonment, etc. 

When people are new in their experiences they 
are very simple and childlike. They are ready and 
willing to give up any idol, lay aside anything that 
the Holy Spirit condemns, no matter how dear or 
precious it may be; therefore they keep filled and 
running over. But by and by they will let the devil 
or some one reason them out of that willing, tender 
attitude, and they will not give up things so easily 
as before; or they will return to some of the little 
things they gave up, etc. They do not seem to know 
that what was once light is always light, "from the 
altar to the throne." So in one little thing or an- 
other they will gradually let down, perhaps in not 
fasting as before, or in praying, or in putting on 
some little thing they once laid aside, or on insuring 
their life, or talking worldly business on the Sab- 
bath, or mentioning the faults of absent persons, 
or on many other lines, they let down and lose the 
fire and power. The first effect of not walking in 
the light is, they lose the keen edge off their ex- 
perience. They lose that glow, that running over in 
prayer and testimony. 

The next effect of not walking in the light is, 
they lose their freedom in God. There is some 
difference in having the "keen edge" and in being 
^^free/^ A soul can have an amount of spiritual 
freedom who has lost the "keen edge." The soul 
who has the keen edge is always in perfect trim, 
whereas the soul who has an amount of freedom has 



WALKING IN THE LIGHT 67 

to be primed or wrought up a while by the meeting 
before he is heated. When spiritual freedom is lost, 
the soul testifies, prays, sings and takes part in the 
meeting, but is somehow tied up. They shake them- 
selves as usual, but still are tied. They use the 
same language in testimony or the same texts in 
their sermons, they used when they had the fire, but 
they do not strike fire. It sounds nice and rhetorical 
and orthodox, but somehow or other it makes you 
feel like hanging your head. 

The next effect of not walking in the light — the 
soul gets into a confused place. It does not know 
where it is — whether it is saved or not. The indi- 
vidual still comes to meeting and testifies, prays, etc., 
but is in a confused place. All of their joy is 
gone; all of their assurance, all of their spiritual 
comfort. Darkness seems to envelop their whole 
being. Why is this? Their ''light has become dark- 
ness." They did not ''walk while they had light," 
but became slack and careless. Oh, wretched state 
of soul! 

The next effect of not walking in the light is, 
instead of praying and pressing their way back, the 
individual commences to get slack and reckless. 
Since all of their joy is gone, all their peace and 
assurance gone, they g^t slack in prayer and in at- 
tending the meeting, etc. 

The last and most deplorable effect is, they be- 
come completely discouraged and rush headlong 
into open sin, and become skeptics or infidels. 

O friend, "Walk while you have light, lest dark- 
ness come upon you." 



CHAPTER XIV. 



TRUE AND FALSE JOY 



This is one of the ways the religion of Jesus 
Christ excels all other religions, in that it pro- 
duces the only real joy known upon earth. Two- 
thirds of the religion of the Bible is feeling, viz., 
joy and peace. However, there are some false joys 
which Satan attaches to his religion, to make it 
appear to be the genuine. 

Let us notice some of the false joys. The first 
is circumstantial joy, which makes its possessor feel 
good and joyful when circumstances are favorable, 
especially when they have wealth, position, and 
health. But when the wind changes and wealth, 
health, and position go, this joy goes also and 
leaves its possessor sad, grum and blue. 

The next false joy is pumped-up joy. This kind 
is generally manufactured by people who are back- 
slidden in heart, by people who once had the real 
Holy Ghost joy, but have lost it. Therefore, when 
it comes their time to testify in meeting, they say 
something to keep up appearance, and they must 
say it with zeal and apparent unction. So since they 
are not in possession of the real joy, they must manu- 
facture it, i. e., pump it up (?). So they begin to 
prime themselves by singing their favorite songs, or 
exhorting on their hobby, or clubbing and brow- 



TRUE AND FALSE JOY 69 

beating some poor weak soul in iheir testimony, 
about something upon which thej have no light, 
until they feel warmed up; or in other words, ham- 
mered fire. You can take a hammer and strike upon 
an anvil until it becomes hot enough to burn your 
hand; this is what we call ^'hammered fire" This 
is what people do in the meeting when they have 
lost the real bubbling-over joy, and the glowing Holy 
Ghost fire. They commence to hammer, exhort and 
browbeat some one else in their testimony, until 
they work up a shout. 

O Lord, deliver us from these religious pugilists I 

The next phase of false joy is superficial joy. 
Souls generally have this kind, who have not con- 
fessed out and dug down to bed rock; to the real 
living stream, but have simply claimed the bless- 
ing without digging down and striking fire. They 
try at times to shout and get blessed when the real 
saints are getting blessed, but you can detect a 
shallowness and hollowness in their ^'Hallelujah" 
and ^'Glory to God." They do not seem to swing 
clear and clean in their souls. They seem hidebound 
someway and somewhere. Hence their "Hallelu- 
jahs" and "Glorys" someway make the groans come 
over your soul. 

The next thought to be considered is how to ob- 
tain the real joy. 

First, the seeker must renounce all sin and 
doubtful things and doubtful practices, yes, every 
weight and soul entanglement. 

Second, dig down, by prayer, fasting, self-abne- 
gation, confession, and faith, until you strike the 
living stream of Salvation, which will cause you 



70 SELECT FRUITS 

to know, beyond a shadow of doubt, that you have 
the real thing. Mr. Wesley says, "None, therefore, 
ought to believe that the work is done, till there is 
added the testimony of the Spirit, witnessing His 
entire sanctification as clearly as His justification'^ 
("Plain Account"). 

Observe a few benefits derived from the "Joy 
of the Lord." 

First, it is a sure cure for the "blues" and "long- 
facedness." People who have this joy are never 
troubled on these lines. No matter if the stove 
does smoke or the baby cry, or the clothes-line breaks, 
or the children upset the inkstand on the parlor 
carpet; this joy does not cease to flow. However, 
this does not mean that the children should not be 
punished for upsetting the inkstand! 

A second benefit is, it is a sure cure for coward- 
ice, fear of man, shamefacedness, etc. It will make 
you as bold as a lion, and put the "flint face" upon 
you, so that you will not be ashamed to sing and 
pray in public. 

Its third benefit is, it is permanent. It lasts from 
revival to revival ; from camp-meeting to camp-meet- 
ing. No matter how things are dried up around you 
— dead churches and backslidden preachers and 
members — you will have joy the year round. 

Now reader, if you have not this joy there is 
something undoubtedly wrong. O, do investigate 
this matter at once and remove the obstruction, and 
your joy will flow as a river ! 



CHAPTEK XV. 



HUMILITY 



"Be clothed with humility" (1 Pet. 5:5). 

We are exhorted here by the apostle not only 
to have humility, but to let it cover us as a garment, 
so that our every word and action may be a reproduc- 
tion of our lowly Master. 

Many have zeal, courage, and faith, who are 
grievously wanting in this excellent grace. It is 
just now and then we meet those whose every word 
and action bespeaks humility. I have seen souls 
so clothed with humility and holy modesty, that to 
be in their presence made me feel like putting my 
hand upon my mouth and lifting my heart in silent 
prayer to God. 

Let us notice some characteristics of true humil- 
ity, and see if we are wanting in this excellent 
grace. 

1. It sees good in everyone but itself, and takes 
no particular notice of its own goodness ; but as one 
has said, "It is such a dainty flower that it cannot 
bear to be looked upon by itself; if so, it disappears." 

2. True humility makes its possessor a joyful 
servant of all; yea, rich or poor, high or low, white 
or black, without feeling an atom of pride, prejudice, 
ill-ivill or reluctancy. Neither do they ever take 
exception to anything that is said or insinuated, but 

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72 SELECT FRUITS 

feel in themselves to be nothing, and poor, and vile. 
Hence, they are not at all alarmed, or cast down, if 
others form the same opinion. 

3. True humility never proudly displays its 
gifts, talents or blessings. And whenever its pos- 
sessor is called upon to give a reason of the hope 
within, they do so with modesty and great humility 
of mind. They take no delight in telling where they 
have been, where they were educated, etc. And they 
also refrain from the use of all high-sounding, pomp- 
ous words, which cannot be easily understood by the 
common people. Wesley said he ''could no more use 
a fine manner than he could a fine suit of clothes/^ 

4. True humility makes its possessor a silent 
sufferer and an unflinching hurden-l^earer under all 
circumstances. How suggestive are the words of the 
prophet concerning the Savior, "He is brought as 
a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her 
shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth" (Isa. 
53 : 7) . Jesus also expressed the same thought when 
He said, "Eesist not evil. ... If they compel thee 
to go one mile, go with them two.'' Therefore, the 
truly humble soul never complains of its crosses, 
hardships, lonely life, loss of health, loss of friends, 
etc. Neither doth it ever feel imposed upon, since 
it blames no creature for the burdens and crosses 
laid upon it, but receives them all as from God, who 
is too wise to err and too gracious and loving to 
impose. 

The question may arise here, How may we attain 
to this depth of humility? We answer, in short: 
1. Make it the constant pursuit of life, everywhere 
and at all times. 2. Accept, and quickly curl down 



HUMILITY 73 

under every cross and humbling process that God 
permits to come your way, through men or devils, 
friends or foes, until all the big "I" is crushed out 
and Christ is all and in all. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



A GOOD CONSCIENCE 



"For our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our con- 
science" (2 Cor. 1:12). 

There can be no success in the Divine life with- 
out this all-important factor, viz., the testimony of 
a good conscience. 

Paul exhorted Timothy to ^'hold faith and a 
good conscience, which some having put away, con- 
cerning faith have made shipwreck" (1 Tim. 1: 19). 
One of the first things God holds souls to, when they 
come to Him seeking pardon, is that of resurrecting 
conscience. When they were young and innocent, 
their conscience was so tender that the least wrong 
word or act would give them great distress. But as 
they continued to sin from time to time, they si- 
lenced conscience — so much so, that nothing they 
did (no matter how heinous) would give them the 
least distress. Hence God sets them to resurrecting 
conscience, by confessing and rectifying their past 
wrongs, even the smallest offences. Hence, by this 
means, conscience is resurrected to its normal state, 
so as to detect the smallest sin, even to the weight 
of a spider's web. 

The question may arise here, "What is con- 
science?" "It is an inward judge, under God, and 
above man; to commend when we do well, and to 

74 



A GOOD CONSCIENCE 75 

reprove and condemn when we do wrong," says Mr. 
Wesley. Again, it is the scalCj or the testing sta- 
tion of the soul, at which we can weigh and test 
every transaction of life. When all is well, con- 
science hangs at an even poise, but the least wrong 
word or deed throws it from its equilibrium and 
makes us feel condemned and heavy-hearted. 

Again, conscience reminds us of a strand of 
barbed wire on either side of the "Narrow Way." 
Hence, when we are about to stray from the path of 
righteousness, we feel it pricking our hearts, and 
reminding us that we are bordering on the line of 
danger. 

There are three stages of conscience: First, a 
^'good conscience.^' Second, a morMd, scrupulous 
conscience. Third, a ^'seared conscience.'^ 

First : Note some characteristics of a good con- 
science. 1. An inward clearness, consciousness of 
the Divine favor under all circumstances. 2. An 
inward contentment and restfulness, under the 
brightest gospel light, and the closest search of the 
word. 3. Composure, confidence and fortitude, un- 
der the closest investigation of the brethren or the 
most radical scriptural preaching. Not that a "good 
conscience" places one beyond the sphere of receiv- 
ing new light, but it makes him measure up to all 
known light, and ever cheerfully ready for new light 
from God, even though He send it through a boot- 
black. 

Second : Some characteristics of a scrupulous 
conscience. 1. An over-conscientious feeling regard- 
ing lawful things, things which the world does not 
condemn, such as killing a chicken, killing a bedbug, 



76 SELECT FRUITS 

getting married, etc., etc. We once met a man who 
felt awfully condemned if he killed an insect in the 
home, or reproved his children. Such condemnation 
as this is the result of a morbid scrupulous con- 
science. 

Another characteristic of a scrupulous conscience 
is the feeling that maybe you are wrong some way 
or somewhere, even though you are doing your very 
best, and walking in all known light — a feeling that 
you are not right because all the neighbors do not 
get saved. You must remember, all of the people 
did not get saved under the teaching and preaching 
of the Son of God, nor the apostles. 

Third: Some characteristics of a seared con- 
science. A presumptous, non-scrupulous, careless, 
hard spirit. O, how many poor souls are now in 
this appalling condition, where conscience was once 
true to warn, reprove, and check! But they silenced 
and ignored it so many times, until it became numb ; 
hence it can no more take the soft impressions of 
the Spirit, and warn the soul of impending danger. 
O, lamentable state of soul! 

There lives in me a faithful guide; 
I'll ne'er go wrong while he abides. 
When I obey, my sky is clear ; 
But when I don't, there's gloom and fear — 
'Tis conscience. 



CHAPTEK XVII. 

HINTS ON CHURCH ETIQUETTE 

1. Always enter the church on tiptoe. 

2. Never go up to the front after the minister 
has begun his discourse. 

3. Always kneel in silent prayer before taking 
your seat. 

4. Avoid talking loudly, or whispering, during 
the service ; it is the height of impoliteness. 

5. Never look back to see who is entering. 

6. Never take the end seat, nearest the aisle, 
while there remain ones back in the same row; al- 
ways take the farthest back, so that parties coming 
in late may be seated without climbing over you 
or disturbing the speaker. 

7. The habit of chewing gum is of itself heathen- 
ish, but to do so in church is an unmistakable indica- 
tion of poor training. 

8. Never leave your seat until the speaker has 
finished his discourse, unless in cases of extreme 
necessity. 

9. Never eat onions when going to a public 
gathering. What is more offensive that an ill 
breath ? 

10. It is impolite for a lady to crowd into a 
pew between two strange gentlemen, if a seat can 
be obtained elsewhere. 

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78 SELECT FRUITS 

11. It is very impolite, and unhealthful too, to 
spit on the floor, either at home or abroad. 

12. It appears quite immodest for a lady to sit 
in a public gathering with her lower limbs crossed, 
or with her arm around her husband's neck. 

13. It is impolite for a man to continue to hold 
a lady's hand; he should shake it and let it go. 

14. It is impolite for the preacher and people 
on the platform to bow in prayer with their backs 
to the audience; they should always face the 
audience. 

15. It shows poor training to begin putting on 
your wraps before the benediction has been pro- 
nounced. 

16. Never leave the church just when the con- 
tribution box is being passed; it looks as if you 
were trying to avoid giving anything. 

17. Never refuse to put your offering in the con- 
tribution box when it is being passed, in order to 
walk up the aisle and put it on the table. It looks 
as though you wanted the people to see your clothes. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 



AN X-RAY EXAMINATION 



"Search me, O God, and know my heart, and see if there 
be any wicked way in me" (Psa. 139:23). 

We have before us the prayers of an honest soul. 
Now, reader, let us hold our soul and body and spirit 
up before God and pray with the psalmist, ^'Search 
mCy O God, and see if there be any wicked way in 
me." While we do this, let us be judgment-day 
honest, as He searches us out in this lesson. 

1. Our first prayer is. Search my consecration, and 
see if I am as fully abandoned to Thee as I was when 
I was first saved or sanctified. See if I have drawn 
back on my service fully to Thee. Or have I drawn 
back in laying out my means for Thy cause's sake and 
for the salvation of souls. See if I am in any way 
shirking my cross, or failing to deny myself on all 
lines for Thee and Thy cause's sake, as I agreed to 
when You saved me. 

2. Search my love, and see if there is any crea- 
ture or thing in the universe that is sharing my heart. 
Yes, see if there is anything under the sun that I 
enjoy more than Thee, that I sacrifice to more than 
Thee, that I delight in more than Thee, that I think 
of more than Thee, that I disadvantage myself for as 
much as I do for Thee. 

3. Search my conversation, and see if there is 

79 



80 SELECT FRUITS 

any backbiting in it, any evil-speaking, any criticism, 
any slang, any guile, sham, deceit, any harshness, 
any extravagance, any false impressions, any half- 
truth which means a whole lie. 

4. Search my conduct, and see if in all I do or 
say, in all walks of life (as far as I understand), 
it is like the conduct of Jesus Christ (1 John 2:6), 
both in the dark and the light ; at home or abroad ; in 
church or out of church; with women or men; with 
saint or sinner; yes, everywhere, holy and upright. 

5. Search my heart, and see if it contains any 
anger, any envy, any pride, any jealousy, any im- 
patience; any malice, any prejudice, any bigotry, 
any impetuousness, any covetousness, any lust, 
any fear of man that bringeth a snare, any hy- 
pocrisy, any shrinking, any evil shame and false 
modesty, any unbelief, any self-love, any love of 
praise, any love of authority, any love of promi- 
nence. 

6. Search my thoughts, and see if I in any way 
entertain any unclean, unholy thought. See if I 
at any time cherish or entertain uncharitable imagi- 
nations and suspicions, about any man or woman 
upon earth. See if I entertain any thought that I 
would blush to have Thee know. 

7. Search my faith, and see if it is free from all 
wavering, all doubts, all mistrust, and uneasiness. 
Search my Christian zeal, and concern for Thy work 
and lost souls. See if I shed any more midnight 
tears for souls. See if I asked any more midnight 
prayers for souls. See if I disadvantage myself to 
warn and seek them out. See if I have any soul 
concern at all for them. See if I am indolent and 



AN X-RAY EXAMINATION 81 

careless in regard to Thy work, and in praying from 
house to house, and distributing tracts. See if I 
am prompt in attending the religious services, as in 
days gone by. See if I make as much of an effort 
to attend all the services as I used to. See if I love 
the services as I used to. See if I love to testify 
like I used to. See if I love the prayer-meetings 
like I used to. See if I love the Bible and religious 
literature as I once did. O, search me! Search my 
courage, and see if I am afraid to testify for thee in 
all places and against all forms and classes of sin, 
such as lodges, tobacco, adultery, worldly dress, 
church entertainments, the wearing of gold, etc. See 
if I am afraid to testify that Thou dost save people 
from all sin and sanctify them wholly in this present 
world. See if I am afraid to have family prayer, 
or ask the blessing on my food when strangers are 
around. 

10. Search the way I spend the money Thou 
dost leave in my charge, and see if I am a faithful 
steward. See if I waste any of it for unnecessary 
things, such as laces, ribbons, feathers, ornaments, 
jewelry, fireworks, etc. 

11. Search my vows with Thee and my fellow 
man, and see if I have lived up to my agreements, 
in keeping my word, paying my debts, paying all 
vows both to Thee and my fellow man and to my 
family. 

12. Search my influence, and see if I have been 
the cause of any weak brother or sister stumbling 
and losing his way to Thee. See if I have in any 
way set a bad example, or in any way influenced 
some one to do or speak wrong, or caused him to 



82 SELECT FRUITS 

return to something that he once felt convicted to 
give up, but was influenced to return to it by my 
careless living before him. 

13. Search my obedience, and see if I am prompt 
in obeying all of the soft whispers and checks and 
reproofs of the Spirit. 

14. Search my motive, and see if it is perfectly 
free from all self-seeking, all self-interest, all desire 
for anything but to the glory of Thee. 

Now, dear reader, God has answered your pray- 
ers and searched you; so if you have found any de- 
fects, go in to have them removed. 



CHAPTEE XIX. 

A GLIMPSE OF HEAVEN 

One day at home, while all alone, 

I bowed to worship at the throne; 

A tranquil feeling came o'er me. 

And from the body set me free. 

My soul was borne, by angels fair. 

So mildly on the balmy air, 

From earth and ev'ry hill and dale, 

Like fleets swept by the wintry gale. 

I quickly passed the moon so bright. 

The silver queen of silent night ; 

And passed the sun and ev'ry star, 

Than lightning speed, more swift by far. 

And on and up, past chiming worlds, 

Which God's great pow'r has ever whirl'd. 

What wondrous objects met my sight — 

The diamond tow'rs aglow with light, 

The sparkling domes and snow-white mounds, 

Were seen before we crossed time's bounds. 

I saw the shining jasper walls, 

And heard ten thousand angel calls ; 

The pearly gates stood open wide. 

With beck'ning saints on either side. 

I heard the holy angels sing, 

While those bright courts with music ring. 

I passed the gates of glist'ning pearl 

Into that fair and happy world. 

I saw that Great Eternal One, 

Whose face was shining as the sun, 

Exalted on a throne of white, 

"As with a garment, clothed with light." 

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84 SELECT FRUITS 

The streets were payed with burnished gold- 

A sight most wondrous to behold. 

No sun or moon or star was there 

To 'luminate that world so fair, 

For God and Christ did furnish light — 

One perfect day, undimmed by night. 

Bright throngs I saw of angels fair, 

Who knew no pain, no toil, nor care; 

Their faces glowed with holy joy, 

For naught could there their peace destroy. 

Their robes were made of ambient light 

And tipped with gold — a wondrous sight! 

Like liquid music on my ear 

Their voices sounded far and near. 

I saw the ransomed saints from earth, 

As they redemption's songs rehearsed 

Upon those shining harps of gold — 

Such melodies that can't be told. 

I saw the mansions, rich and fine, 

A thousand times the sun outshine, 

Bedecked with jasper, pearl and gold, 

And light congealed, which ne'er grows old. 

I saw the trees of crystal green ; 

Such sight on earth has not been seen. 

On each did grow melliffluous fruit. 

Which grew prepared each taste to suit. 

The hills were draped with flow'rets gay, 

Which bloomed for one eternal day. 

The azure sky, which knew no night. 

Was truly one most glorious sight. 

The buxom air was pure and mild, 

And filled with fragrance all the while. 

No tears were known on that blest shore. 

And pain and death were felt no more. 

On each, perpetual youth did bloom, 

Dispersing all decay and gloom. 

And life's pure river, deep and wide, 

Where placid waters ever glide, 

Was flowing from the great throne white — 

From God, the Fount of love and light. 



A GLIMPSE OF HEAVEN 85 

On either side life's tree stood pure, 
Whose leaves were for the nation's cure. 
While bathing in this nectar stream, 
I 'woke and found it but a dream. 



CHAPTEE XX. 



THE CALL OF DEATH 



By living in this sin-cursed world, where sin and 
death are sole monarchs, the children of God have 
imbibed a false conception of death and dying. It 
is to be admitted that death is our last enemy; but 
on the other hand, according to John's statement 
in Kev. 14 : 13, ''And I heard a voice from heaven 
saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which 
die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the 
Spirit, that they may rest from their labors," to die 
is a great blessing. 

There are three great days in the life of the 
child of God. The first is the day when he was con- 
verted and born from above. O, who can ever forget 
that glorious day, when the burden of sin and guilt 
rolled away, and the inexpressible joy of heaven 
flooded the soul and made it feel like flying away 
with the body! Is it any marvel that people never 
get through talking about the day of their con- 
version, when the hills and valleys smiled, and the 
trees clapped their hands, and all nature joined in 
a harmonious song of praise? 

The second great day, in the life of the Christian, 
is the day when he is sanctified and filled with the 
Holy Ghost and fire ; when his heart is purified from 
all inbred sin, and the Father, Son and Holy Ghost 



THE CALL OF DEATH 87 

come into his soul, in the fullest sense, to abide 
forever. Ofttimes there comes such power, grace 
and glory, on this occasion, that the soul is almost 
swept out of the body. J. A. Wood said, speaking 
of his sanctification : ^'I had always been much pre- 
judiced against people losing their strength; conse- 
quently, as might be expected, w^hen the Holy Ghost 
came upon me in the stand, surrounded by some 
thirty or forty preachers and three thousand people, 
it was God's order to take control of both soul and 
hodj, and swallowed me up in His presence. After 
about three hours, I regained strength to walk to 
the tent." Mrs. Hester Ann Kogers, in speaking of her 
sanctification, said: "I was deeply penetrated with 
His presence and stood as if unable to move, and 
was insensible of all around me. I sank down mo- 
tionless, being unable to sustain the weight of His 
glorious presence.'' 

The third and greatest day of the child of God 
upon earth, is his dying day. Satan would have 
us fearful and to look forward to that day with 
dread ; but according to the voice of inspiration, and 
the long line of testimonies of those who have gone 
before, we are constrained to exclaim with Saint 
Paul, "O death, w^here is thy sting? O grave, where 
is thy victory?" 

Eev. E. Payson said, when dying: 'The Sun 
of Kighteousness has been gradually drawing nearer 
and nearer, appearing larger and brighter as He 
approached, and now fills the whole hemisphere, 
pouring forth a flood of glory in which I seem to float 
like an insect in the beams of the sun, exulting, yet 
almost trembling, while I gaze on this excessive 



88 SELECT FRUITS 

• brightness, and wonder why God should deign thus 
to shine upon a sinful worm." 

Alfred Cookman said, when dying : "I am sweep- 
ing through the gates of the New Jerusalem, washed 
in the blood of the Lamb/' 

We next notice a few things death calls us from : 

1. He calls us from a life of labor and care. 
Ever since God pronounced the curse upon Adam, 
saying, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat 
bread till thou return unto the ground" (Gen. 3 : 19), 
mankind has had to sustain life by labor and toil. 
O, what a blessing to be set free from earth's rigid 
toil! 

2. Death calls us from a life of sorrow and dis- 
appointment. Truly, sorrow and disappointment is 
a universal malady. It is found to a large or small 
degree in every home; yes, in the gilded mansion 
and in the lowly hovel. Sorrow has pressed her bit- 
ter cup to the lips of every son and daughter of 
Adam, but thank God, Death sets the Christian 
free! 

3. Death calls us out of a cumbersome, pain- 
ful, decaying house of clay. O, where is there a 
being to be found upon earth who is perfectly free 
from sickness, aches and pain? O, how severely 
some poor unfortunate creatures are lashed by the 
cruel scourge of disease! Therefore they should 
gladly welcome death, if ready to go. 

We will next briefly notice what death calls 
us to. 

1. Death calls us to our eternal home, where 
there is no sin, no sorrow, no tempter, no grief and 
no grave. 



THE CALL OF DEATH 89 

2. He calls us to our great reward, viz., a 
starry crown brighter than the sun and a mansion 
in the city of God. 

3. He calls us to the greatest of re-unions, 
where we shall meet with Adam the first man, Noah 
the first in the new earth, Moses the law-giver, 
Joshua the great warrior, Elijah who was translated 
in a chariot of fire, the disciples of the Lord Jesus, 
and the millions of redeemed saints who have gone 
before us. We shall also meet our saved loved ones, 
and, best of all, our glorified Eedeemer. 

"O, what a meetiug and a greeting, 
When our loved ones we shall see, 
Waving palms of victory." 



CHAPTEE XXI, 

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SINFUL AND THE 
LEGITIMATE 

"We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we 
are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not for- 
saken ; east down, but not destroyed" — struck to the ground, 
yet never slain — (2 Cor. 4:8-9). 

For the benefit of converts, and new beginners 
in the sanctified life, I want to draw the line be- 
tween the sinful and the lawful, or, in other words, 
How much of the human remains in the individual 
after he is sanctified wholly? This is a very diffi- 
cult point, and many good, honest souls have thrown 
down a genuine experience, owing to not being able 
to draw the line between the two. 

I confess that to give the proper light and in- 
struction this subject demands is too great a task 
for me; however, by the help of the Holy Spirit, I 
shall endeavor to give a few helpful thoughts. 

1. One of the first places new beginners get 
puzzled and confused, is regarding their thoughts, 
especially when they read the following passage: 
^'Casting down imaginations, and every high thing 
that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, 
and bringing into captivity every thought to the 
obedience of Christ" (2 Cor. 10: 5). The trouble is, 
they are not able to discern between ^^evil thoughts," 

90 



THE SINFUL AND THE LEGITIMATE 91 

and "thoughts of evil." We must remember, it is 
no sin to have thoughts of evil; for to avoid this we 
would have to go out of the world. Thoughts of 
evil are only to think of the sinful happenings that 
we see and hear daily. Suppose I see a man murder- 
ing his wife as I pass by on the street. It is such 
a brutal crime that it stands before my mind for 
four or five days, regardless of what I say or do. 
God does not blame for this. It is thinking of evil 
as Jesus thought of evil, when the devil told him to 
fall down and worship him. But an ''evil thought" 
is when the devil presents a wrong thought to the 
door of our heart, and we open the door and take 
it in, and nurse and harbor it ; then it becomes sin ; 
but if we steadfastly resist and beat it back, why, 
we are kept pure and innocent. 

2. The next thing I want to loosely explain, is 
the difference between infirmities and carnality. 
Some people place holiness too high, by teaching 
that when one gets sanctified wholly, he is delivered 
from all infirmities: this is not true. Mr. Wesley 
says, "To place holiness too high crowds it out of 
the world, as well as preaching it too low." But 
the trouble is, they confound infirmities with car- 
nality, not knowing one from the other. The fol- 
lowing are some of the bodily infirmities which we 
may never be delivered from while on this side of the 
river of death : a slowness of speech, a poor memory, 
ignorance of many things, dullness of perception, 
a weak constitution, impaired health, a disfigured 
form, etc. Infirmities are the result of a decaying 
body ; carnality is the result of a corrupt heart. The 
traits of carnality are : anger, impatience, jealousy, 



92 



SELECT FRUITS 



envj, fear of man, pride, self-love and self-will, preju- 
dice, lust, deceit, uncharitable suspicions, foolish de- 
sires, peevishness, sloth, formality, bigotry, evil shame, 
self-righteousness and carnal confidence. We do not 
need to go on and harbor these traits in our heart, 
for the blood of Jesus can cleanse them all out. 
Praise God ! See 1 John 1 : 7. 

3. The next point at which beginners are con- 
fused is on the line of temptation. They have a 
preconceived idea, that because they are saved or 
sanctified they are never to be tempted again; and 
should they get tempted at any time, the devil tells 
them they have backslidden and lost their religion. 
But we must remember that temptation is universal ; 
there never lived a man or woman on earth (no mat- 
ter how holy), who was exempt from temptation. 
Jesus, our great Pattern and Living Head was 
tempted. What saith the scripture? "For we have 
not an high priest which cannot be touched with 
the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points 
tempted like as we are, yet without sin" (Heb. 
4 : 15). It is no sin to be tempted; the sin comes in 
yielding to the temptation. 

4. The next place souls get confused, is in not 
being able to determine between heaviness through 
temptations, and darkness from condemnation. One 
comes from pressure, the other from disobedience. 
Some persons have seasons of awful confusion and 
soul perplexity, sometimes to the extent that they 
cast away their confidence altogether. There are 
times in the lives of almost all Christians, when 
they are severely tried, tempted and pressed, and 
generally during these seasons they are in great 



THE SINFUL AND THE LEGITIMATE 93 

heaviness of spirit; therefore Satan tells them they 
have lost their experience, because they do not feel 
any joy or ecstasy ; but by holding on to God through 
prayer and faith, the pressure is lifted, the clouds 
rolled away, and the soul flooded again with sun- 
shine and gladness. But darkness that comes as 
the result of condemnation, when the individual has 
sinned or grieved God, cannot be chased away by 
the above method, but can only be removed by con- 
fession, repentance and pardon. 

5. The next thought that generally perplexes many 
people is, What does one have to do to lose holiness ? 
Many of them think holiness is such a delicate thing, 
that they are unable to keep it over night; they 
seem to think it is something on the order of a sun- 
heam, that just gets away from one anyhow, re- 
gardless of how he struggles to keep it. But this is 
not true. As it requires prayer ^ deliberation and 
faith to get sanctified wholly, it also requires a de- 
liberate act of the will to lose it. A man can keep 
it if he so desires, or he can get careless, slack and 
indifferent, and let it go. And not only this, but 
God has a way of letting a man know when he gets 
this experience, and also letting him know when he 
loses it. If a man could lose it and not hnow any- 
thing about it, and he should go on and lose his soul, 
God would be responsible, since the man is only 
responsible for the light (knowledge) he has. But 
God doesn't do this kind of slipshod business. He 
makes souls hnow when they get it, and when they 
lose it. I confess many go on professing to have it 
when they have lost it, nevertheless, deep down in 
their hearts, they hnow they have lost it. 



94 SELECT FRUITS 

6. The last inquiry we give space here, is, Can 
we lose holiness and retain justification? B. T, 
Roberts answers this question as follows: "When 
one loses the blessing of holiness by transgression, 
as David did, he loses all. He is no longer justified ; 
if he ever gets back to God it must be by repentance 
and confession. But when one loses the blessing 
of holiness by giving way to doubts and fears, under 
manifold temptations, the case is different. He has 
not willingly given up anything. The blessing is 
gone ; he feels it, he laments it ; he cries out, 'O that 
I knew w^here I might find Him !' When one listens 
to the accusations of Satan and fails to bear a clear 
testimony of being washed by the blood of the Lamb, 
he loses the blessing; the witness is gone, but he 
does not necessarily fall into sin; he may still be 
keenly alive to the fear of God; he may still watch 
against sin and have victory over it. He may still 
truly love God and faithfully endeavor to keep all 
his commandments. Such a person in losing the 
blessing of holiness has not lost his justification. He 
is still a child of God." 



CHAPTER XXII. 



MODERN IDOLATRY 



"Little children, keep yourselves from idols" (1 John 
5:21). 

In regarding the Old Testament, we find it abound- 
ing with warnings and exhortations to the people 
against idolatry. We can also see from the above 
text that the flight of time and years has not amelio- 
rated the hot displeasure of the Lord against this 
giant sin. It is appalling to what extent the so- 
called children of God are drifting into idolatry in 
these modern times. It is to be remembered, we do 
not have to fall down in humble plight to a "golden 
calf/' or to the great image "Diana," to be idolaters, 
but any creature or object, no matter how small, 
that divides our affections, or has first place in our 
hearts, is an idol. 

Let us briefly notice a few of the modern idols 
that are found among church people these days. 

1. It is idolatry to allow your husband or wife 
to come between you and the service and worship 
of God. 

2. For one to keep a caged bird^ rabbit, squirrel, 
parrot, fish or such like thing, is idolatry. Those 
who do this commit a three-fold sin : first, by allow- 
ing themselves to be hampered from attending the 
church to care for such things ; secondly, by making 

95 



D6 SELECT FRUITS 

the little creature a prisoner, when God has designed 
that it be free; thirdly, by wasting money for its 
sustenance that might be the means of saving souls 
in heathen lands. 

3. The next modern home god is house plants, 
house flowers, etc. It is astonishing how much of 
God's precious time and money is spent on these 
things, that might be spent in prayer, missionary 
work, visiting the sick, etc. 

4. The next modern idol is a pet dog. It is 
actually a burning shame and disgrace to civiliza- 
tion, the way this unclean brute is cuddled, dandled 
and made over these days. Women who would dis- 
dain the idea of keeping an orphan child, will lavish 
hundreds of dollars on this unclean and basest of 
brutes. No saint of God can conscientiously keep 
a house dog. The Bible says, '^without are dogs" 
(Kev. 22: 15). It may be all right to keep a watch 
dog about the farm (provided he is kept out of the 
house), but to keep a house dog is downright idol- 
atry. 

5. The next phase of idolatry is fine, expensive 
house furniture and fancy dishes. It is alarming 
the amount of God's money that is spent these days 
on this line. A man can no more spend God's 
money for high-priced fancy dishes and costly furni- 
ture, and be a Christian, than he can steal and be 
a Christian. 

6. The next phase of modern idolatry is the 
wearing of jewelry. If God pronounced earrings, 
finger rings, breast-pins, gold chains, etc., idols in 
the days of Jacob (Gen. 35:4) and in the days of 



MODERN IDOLATRY 97 

Isaiah (Isa. 3: 16-22), He has by no means changed 
His attitude toward them in this our day. 

7. The next phase of modern idolatry is the 
excessive photograph system. It is all right, per- 
haps, to have a photograph taken two or three times 
in a lifetime, but to have it done every year or two 
is "self-love," which is the highest specimen of idol 
atry. Again, it is becoming a common thing for 
people to decorate their walls with "holy" pictures, 
viz., pictures of angels, the Virgin Mary, and of the 
Savior; but I have my doubts as to whether it 
pleases God (see Ex. 20:4). 

8. The next phase of modern idolatry is money 
spent unnecessarily in burying the dead. It is 
alarming the amount of money spent yearly on this 
line. Some go so far as to spend two or three hun- 
dred dollars for a casket, fifty and seventy-five dol- 
lars for a shroud, and more or less for flowers. But 
this is downright idolatry. It is burying money 
that might be used to Christianize the heathen, or 
help support the widows and orphans. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



BLOOD-GUILTINESS 



"Your hands are defiled with blood" (Isa. 59:3). 

It will be an astonishing scene, at the judgment 
day, to see the vast number of professors of religion 
and of holiness whose hands will be stained with 
the Mood of souls. It is considered an awful crime, 
in this life, for a man or woman to be guilty of 
murder, i. e., of destroying the natural life of their 
fellow man ; but it is a million times more appalling 
to be guilty of soul murder. 

Let us imagine now that the judgment day has 
come, and all the dead, both saints and sinners, are 
resurrected, and all the living changed and exalted 
to mid-air before the ^'great white throne.'^ See the 
King in His beauty upon the throne, brighter than 
a million suns, while the whole universe quakes at 
His presence. See the teeming billions of blood- 
washed saints, with radiant faces, standing at his 
right hand. See the innumerable black throng of 
lost souls, on whose faces burn despair, anguish 
and eternal shame. And as we gaze upon them, we 
not only see men from distant climes, but see our 
sons and daughters, our husbands and wives, who 
have lived under the same roof, eaten at the 
same table, shared our joys and sorrows during 
our pilgrimage upon earth. But now the scene 

08 



BLOOD-GUILTINESS 99 

has changed, and they are Jehovah's eternal 
prisoners, fettered before the bar. The light has 
flown from their eyes — the enchanting smile that 
once played upon their cheek has vanished away. 
Hope has died in every breast and horror fetters 
them speechless before the Judge. And as we look 
into the faces of these lost ones, can any of them say 
to us, ''Your hands are stained with my blood; if 
you had done your duty, I would not have been to- 
day a lost souV 

Now reader, with this awful picture before your 
mind, let us closely observe a few facts, and see if 
your hands are clean. 

I. We will begin at your home. Are you clear 
of the hlood of your children? Could you this mo- 
ment meet them at the judgment bar, before the 
great God, and testify both to God and man that 
you are clear of their blood, and that you have done 
all that was in your power to get them saved? If 
not, your hands are stained with their blood. 

And since the day you were converted, have you 
always set the proper example before them? First, 
in your conversation. Has it always been free from 
slander, evil speaking, slang, jokes, profanity, fool- 
ishness and lies? Did you permit them to wear 
things that God would not permit you to wear, go 
to places He would not permit you to go, play games 
He would not permit you to play? Did you ever 
cover their sins or justify them when they had done 
wrong, rather than make them confess and straight- 
en it up as far as possible ? 

If so, your hands are stained with their blood and 
you are a soul cutthroat. 



100 SELECT FRUITS 

II. Are you clear of the Mood of your neigJibor, 
and ready to meet him before God? Could you say 
to him, ''I faithfully warned you again and again; 
I have prayed for you every day since I embraced 
religion; I have set before you a godly example, 
keeping myself pure from all strong drink, all un- 
cleanness, all tobacco, all theatres, all circuses, all 
Sabbath desecration, all base ball games, all worldly 
dress, all secret societies, all labor unions, all pic- 
nics, all card parties, or wrong doing of any kind, 
and have lived a righteous life both before God and 
man. Hence I am clear of your blood." Or will he 
say to you, when he realizes something of what it 
means to be lost, "Why did you not tell me about 
this? You saw me every day, and talked to me 
about the weather, the styles, the market prices, 
etc., but you never told me about the judgment; 
you never told me it would be like this" ? 

Are your hands stained with blood? 

III. Are you clear of the blood of the heathen, 
and ready to meet them at the judgment bar? We 
must remember, every Christian in the home land is 
in a measure responsible for the salvation of the 
heathen. Now if you are clear of their blood and 
ready to meet them before God, you have done these 
things: 1. You have prayed for them daily, that 
God might send the light to them and save them. 
2. You have given money to help send and support 
the gospel in the foreign fields (provided you could 
not go), even though you had to deny yourself 
many unnecessary table luxuries to do so. 

It is appalling to think of the amount of money 
spent in our country per annum for unnecessary 



BLOOD-GUILTINESS 101 

things. Think of |98,223,310 spent per annum for 
tea and coffee. Think of the |800,000,000 per annum 
for the trimming of hats, such as feathers, ribbons, 
artificial flowers, etc. ! Think of the |60,500,000 per 
annum for jewelry! Think of the |15,000,000 per 
annum for chewing gum! 

Can we as Christians take any part in these great 
sins and be clear of the blood of souls? How do 
your hands look? 

IV. Are you clear of the blood of deceived 
church members in your community? 

Now there are many indirect ways in which you 
can be guilty at this point. Notice! 1. Do you 
give your money to support an unclean minister — 
one who opposes the doctrines of the Bible, viz., the 
doctrine of "living without sin," and the doctrine of 
holiness ; one who uses tobacco in any form, belongs 
to lodges, drinks strong drink, goes to theatres and 
circuses, plays or attends baseball games, or any 
other ungodly thing? If so, you are only supporting 
a wolf in sheep's clothing, who is growing fat on the 
blood of souls, and is blindfolding you and your chil- 
dren, and your neighbor and neighbor's children, 
with lies and smooth sayings (woven in flattery's 
loom) and leading you down to a lake of fire and 
brimstone. 

2. Do you lend your influence to those churches 
which plead for sin, believe it is no harm to dance, 
go to the theatre, drink beer, use tobacco, etc.? Do 
you lend them your influence by attending their 
meetings and by sending your children to their Sab- 
bath-schools? If so, you are lending your influence 
to an ungodly movement and thus encouraging its 



102 SELECT FRUITS 

votaries to perpetuate a soul death trap in your 
community. Are your hands stained with the blood 
of souls? 

3. Do you hold an even light before them? We 
remember when, in the country at night, one of our 
party would carry the lantern and thus lead the 
way ; but when he failed to hold an even light on the 
path, the light would blind and confuse, rather 
than help us. So it is when we fail to hold an even, 
sound life and doctrine before the people; we con- 
fuse and bemuddle them, rather than help them. 
And when they see so many "isms" and "ites" they 
question "Who is right?" 

V. Are you fulfilling your God-given calling f 
God has not seen fit to use angels in this great re- 
demption scheme, but has condescended to make 
men His co-laborers. How many men and women 
do we find to-day, in the stores, in the machine shops, 
in the kitchen, and in various walks of life, who have 
played the Jonah and run away from the call of God, 
while souls are teeming down to the flames at the 
rate of forty per minute. 

Are you clear? How do your hands look? Are 
they stained with blood? O may the Lord awake 
us before we awake in hell's corrosive fires! 



CHAPTER XXIV. 



CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE 



"Ye are the salt of the earth; but if the salt have lost 
his savour, wherewith shall it be salted?" (Matt. 5:13). 

How simple, yet how instructive is the teaching 
of the Lord Jesus! How readily does the simplest 
mind grasp His meaning in the parable of the ^'salt." 
We are at once reminded of how tasteless and re- 
pulsive food is without this all-important factor. 

We have here in this subject a very impressive 
lesson on Christian influence. It is to be remem- 
bered that every man and woman, boy or girl, upon 
earth is wielding an influence over some one else, 
that is either lifting him to heaven or dragging him 
to hell. Every one of us (figuratively speaking) is 
like an engine with a long string of cars; we are 
all pulling a long train of human souls to heaven or 
hell. O brother, friend! what way is your train 
headed ? 

Let us notice a few points of interest regarding 
influence. 

The first is its growth. "Away in the Allegha- 
nies there is a spring so small that a single ox could 
drink it dry on a summer day. It steals its unob- 
served way among hills until it spreads out into the 
beautiful Ohio River, thence it stretches away a thou- 
sand miles." So it is with influence; it is made up 

103 



104 SELECT FRUITS 

of the small unobserved acts of life, both good and 
bad, which continue their ceaseless flow until they 
girdle the globe a thousand times and empty into 
the great ocean — Eternity. 

The next point of interest is the poioer of influ- 
ence. One has well said, ''The two greatest powers 
on earth are ill example and ill advice." Think of 
a single act affecting heaven, earth and hell; think 
of Eve's one act of unbelief in Eden, robbing heaven 
of its best jewel, girdling earth with unbelief, and 
peopling hell with billions of her sons and daugh- 
ters! Think of the influence gone out from Cain's 
one act of murder! See the long stream of blood 
that girdles our earth to-day! There is either a 
secret or public murderer in fifty per cent of our 
American homes. When we think of the wholesale 
destruction of unborn infants that is carried on in 
our land to-day, it should send us upon our faces 
in the dust. 

The next point that deserves attention is the 
absolute necessity of a good influence, in the Chris- 
tian work. The Bible clearly teaches this thought 
in many places. A man might as well go to battle 
without a weapon as to go forth in Christian work 
with an ill influence. The more intently he labors, 
the more harm he will do to the cause of God. 

Another interesting feature about influence is 
its duration. We must remember that our influence 
does not stop when they lay our body away to rest 
beneath the weeping willow, but it rushes on from 
age to age, affecting and impressing our sons and 
daughters and grandsons and granddaughters, un- 
til Jesus comes. 



CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE 105 

The next thought that impresses us is theirredeem- 
ahleness of a lost influence. Lost money may be re- 
placed, lost health may be restored, lost friendships 
may be regained, but lost influence can never be 
fully redeemed; it may be repaired but can never 
be fully restored on this side of eternity. It is like 
so many small feathers strewn to the wind; they 
can never be gathered. If you have crippled your 
brother's influence, you have given him an incurable 
wound that will cause him to go halting to the 
grave; therefore we should be very careful how we 
treat the influence of our brother and sister. Many 
a good man's or woman's influence has been buried 
at the breakfast, dinner or supper table, by the re- 
mark of a thoughtless parent, before the children, 
never to rise again. O reader, are you guilty of this 
diabolical crime? 

The next point of interest is, how to preserve in- 
fluence. Now it is possible for us, by not being 
watchful, to cripple our own influence. The follow- 
ing are a few hints on how to preserve our influence : 

1. Carefully avoid all questionable conduct ; 
flee from the very appearance of sin; take no time 
to reason with the tempter; his dainties may have 
a pleasing appearance, but they lead to endless 
woe. 

2. Be a man or woman of your word, as far as 
lieth in your power; endeavor always to do as you 
promised, and should you fall short, and not be able 
to do so, go to the individual and explain yourself 
at your earliest convenience. 

3. Be careful to live all you testify to, both at 
home and abroad ; for if one should hear you testify 



106 SELECT FRUITS 

to one thing and see you live another, he would 
brand you as a hypocrite, which would be true. 

4. Say nothing, nor do anything, at any time 
or place, that you would not be willing for every 
man, woman, boy or girl to follow your example. 



CHAPTER XXV. 



SERIOUSNESS 



Of late my attention has been called to this sub- 
ject by the Spirit of God, so I feel by His help to 
write a few lines on it. Now, seriousness and godli- 
ness are inseparable (that is, godly seriousness), 
and where one is found the other is sure to be. 
Webster says: "Seriousness is gravity of manner 
or mind; solemnity; without levity." 

Truly, my heart is pained to see the lack of this 
sister to godliness among the most pious and relig- 
ious people of our day. O, how light and trifling 
some of the representatives of Jesus Christ are to- 
day, even ministers of the gospel. But that deep 
solemnity that makes one to live, move and act "as 
seeing Him that is invisible" is rarely seen any more. 

What I want to notice is that solemn declaration 
of the Lord Jesus Christ found in Matt. 12 : 36 : "But 
I say unto you that every idle word that men shall 
speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of 
judgment." O that all men would lay this to heart, 
and most especially those who profess to know and 
walk with God ! If so, it would not only be a sure 
cure for evil speaking, but for all light and uncalled- 
for words, at home and abroad. 

Think now, reader ! Begin at your own door, and 
see how many uncalled-for, useless, unimportant 

107 



108 SELECT FRUITS 

words you utter daily; words that if the second 
thought were taken, would not be spoken; words 
that do not ^^edify" the hearer. Remember the 
solemn caution of the apostle: "Let your speech 
be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may 
know how ye ought to answer every man." Jesus 
says : ''Let your communication be, Yea, yea ; Nay, 
nay; for whatsoever is more than these cometh of 
evir (from the devil) (Matt. 5:37). 

How much idle talk do we hear in a religious 
gathering? In olden times, while the services were 
going on, the people would sit in prayer and tears, 
but in these days the so-called people of God sit in 
the service and talk, and look about over the room, 
with no concern whatever. In the early days of 
Christianity, when the services were dismissed, each 
individual walked quietly out of the room, as though 
they saw God in their midst. But in these days, as 
soon as meeting is out, laughing and talking are 
heard equal to "Vanity Fair," and while people are 
at worship on the Lord's holy day they are heard 
talking about the next week's business, work and 
trading, and when on their way to church, when 
their thoughts should be lifted to God for His bless- 
ings on the services, they are talking about worldly 
things — houses, lands, gain, and home affairs. And 
at home, how many useless words are used, loud 
laughing, long conversations that are to no profit. 
Remember, friend, Jesus says, "every idle word." 
If all useless words that are used by the so-called 
children of God were turned into prayers and plead- 
ings, we believe God would convert a nation in a 
day. 



SERIOUSNESS 109 

O, let US all be more serious in our whole manner, 
actions and words. Let our words be few — *'Yea, 
yea; Nay, nay," i. e., to the point. No boisterous 
talking ; no loud, rude laughing. Solomon says : "A 
fool laughs loud." No uncalled-for talk about the 
customs of the day; but weigh every word before 
speaking. Keep to the old proverb, "Think twice 
before you speak once." Again, be serious; be a 
man or woman of "few words," for "in the multitude 
of words there wanteth not sin." O, how God's 
Spirit is grieved in these days through light and 
trifling talk. Keep this thought in view: "By thy 
words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou 
shalt be condemned." 

Would you speak idle and uncalled-for words if 
you saw an angel walking by your side, writing down 
every word you said? Well, God has a record of 
every word you have spoken since the day you came 
into the world. There is a perfect copy of all your 
words, actions and thoughts recorded in heaven 
daily. Would you use idle and foolish talk if you 
knew you were to die to-morrow ? Well, friend, you 
may go before to-morrow, for your life is but a "va- 
por." 

So, reader, from this hour refrain from all words 
that you can get along without. There are some 
words that are not wicked in themselves, some con- 
versations that don't seem sinful, but they are un- 
called for, useless; they are more than "Yea, yea," 
and "Nay, nay;" therefore they are condemned. 
Jesus says, "Every idle word." So let us walk, talk 
and act as if Jesus walked by our side in a visible 
form. Amen. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



WHITE MOTIVE 



"The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper 
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing of 
soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a dis- 
cerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Heb. 4 : 12). 

The souls that have the lamp of holiness burn- 
ing continually vrithin, dispersing all gloom, all 
doubt and fear, are those who keep a tvhite motive — 
a pure intention — a sanctified purpose. 

Jesus says, "If therefore thine eye [motive, pur- 
pose, intention] be single, thy whole body shall be 
full of light [holiness]. But if thine eye be evil, 
thy whole body shall be full of darkness" (Matt. 
7:22, 23). Hence, without a '^single eye" we re- 
main worldly, sensual and devilish. 

The question may arise here, What is motive? 
Motive is the unseen actuative power to the soul. 
That which incites the action; determines choice; 
moves the will — the prompter of every deed. 

The only service done by man, that will receive 
a reward from the Lord at the judgment day, is that 
which was prompted by a white, sanctified motive 
— that which was done strictly to the glory of God. 
O, how many disappointed souls there will be at the 
judgment bar, whose work will fail to stand the 
scrutiny of God's refining fire! Let us place our- 

110 



WHITE MOTIVE 111 

selves on the stand before God, for inspection, for 
a few moments, and see if we are in possession of 
this all-important factor, viz., a white motive, a 
pure intention, a sanctified purpose, in every ave- 
nue of life, both at home and abroad. 

1. Do you attend church to be seen of men, to 
show your new bonnet, to show your new clothes, 
to meet your friends, to be in good society, to so- 
licit trade, to seek a wife or husband; or do you at- 
tend, solely and strictly, to the glory of God? 

2. Do you give to be thought well of, to obtain 
the praise of men, to eclipse some one else; or* is 
every donation, both small and great, given with a 
pure intention, and unbiased purpose, a single eye 
to the glory of God? 

3. Do you sing, pray, testify and preach, at all 
times and places, with this one thing in mind, viz., to 
glorify God ? Or do you do it to be heard by man, to 
display your talent and ability, to browbeat some one 
else, to solicit praise, and to keep up with the crowd ? 

4. Have you a real hurden for lost souls on 
your heart, or do you follow the religious work for 
a livelihood ? 

Notice a few indications of a white motive: 

1. To set the Lord before you in all you do or 
say; having no other aim or purpose in view but to 
glorify Him. 

2. To not feel hurt or mortified when you have 
displeased man to please God. 

3. To feel no sense of fear of losing your repu- 
tation or friends, when called to obey God on some 
line that does not appear pleasing to your friends. 
The man with a white motive has nothing to lose. 



112 SELECT FRUITS 

He has all his capital invested in the bank of heaven ; 
hence he fears nothing but sin, and bows to none 
but God. O Hallelujah! 

4. To never feel any sense of discouragement 
for a moment, when you have done your best, even 

-though but little was accomplished. Kempis says, 
^ ^^Discouragement is a fruit of pride rather than of 
humility." 

5. To go forth in the work of the Lord with 
the same amount of zeal, after you have been severe- 
ly criticized and censured by your superiors, as you 
did when they praised and commended you. 

The next question is, how to obtain a white mo- 
tive? We answer, in short, seek and obtain the 
experience of entire sanctification, which cleanses 
the soul from all traits of sin and selfishness, and 
fills it with the Holy Ghost and fire. 

The next question is, how to keep a white motive ? 

1. See that ^'self" is kept thoroughly crucified. 
He is your greatest foe. 

2. Beware of a tendency to desire and seek 
donations and gifts for yourself. The Word says, 
"A gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert 
the words of the righteous" (Deut. 16:19). 

3. Avoid the commendation of men, or else you 
will awake to the fact that by continuing to hear it, 
a desire for it is being resurrected in your heart. 

4. When you have been mightily blessed or used 
of the Lord in any way, quickly retire to your closet 
or retire in your heart, and confess your nothing- 
ness and unworthiness to Him, and give Him all 
the glory for what was done, and in so doing your 
soul will flourish like a palm tree. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 



COMPLETE SUBMISSION 



"Submit yourselves therefore to God" (James 4:7). 

Oh, how much is meant in these few words ! And 
what a difficult task to get humanity to adhere to 
them. But here lies the secret of spiritual wealth. 
We believe we are safe in saying, God has more 
trouble with souls at this point than any other. 
It is no great task to get souls to do some big thing, 
or make some great outside sacrifice; but the great 
difficulty is to get them to fully and completely 
abandon themselves to God's will, without reserve. 

Let us now define the word "submit.^' At first 
sight it only seems to mean "surrender," i. e., ceas- 
ing to war with God and His truth. But that is 
far from the full meaning of the word ; for one could 
go this far and still hate God in his heart. 

But let us notice a few things involved in this 
"submission:" 1. A complete yielding of all one^s 
powers to God for time and eternity. 2. A com- 
plete yielding of choice for time and eternity. 3. 
It must not be a forced submission, such as a de- 
feated general renders to his conqueror, but a cheer- 
ful one, such as the happy bride renders to the choice 
of her love — not grudgingly, not with dissatisfac- 
tion, as though you had made a bad bargain, but 
a contented submission, so that if you should live 

113 



114 SELECT FRUITS 

upon eartii a million years you would not become 
dissatisiied and clamor to become your own boss 
again. 

There would be no difficulty to get missionaries 
for the home and foreign fields, or preachers for 
poor circuits, or workers for the slums and dives 
of the city, if the professed Christians were fully 
submitted to God — soul, body, time, talent and in- 
fluence, for past, present and future. A soul that is 
fully submitted to God never draws back from duty ; 
never complains against the providence of God; 
never complains at losses or crosses; never com- 
plains about the heat or cold, wet or dry ; never cen- 
sures God for what appears to be partiality; but is 
so submitted that it accepts all that comes its way 
as from God, knowing that nothing can come, neither 
from men or devils, without God's permission. 
Hence, a fully submitted soul never complains about 
sickness, losses, mishaps, or any such things, since 
he is conscious of the fact that not a hair of his head 
can fall to the ground without the notice of his 
heavenly Father. See Heb. 13 : 5 ; Phil. 2 : 12-15. 

Again, a fully surrendered soul never gets 
alarmed and wrought up concerning how it is to get 
food and raiment. Its duty is to serve God, and do 
all in its power to have the necessities of life ; but if 
all this is done and still no way opens, it is to rest 
implicitly upon God. 

Fully submitted souls never find fault or blame 
others for what is said about or done to them. They 
make God responsible for all that comes their way. 

Fully submitted souls never go to law nor con- 
tend with any one for their rights, but commit all 



COMPLETE SUBMISSION 115 

to Him who has said, "Vengeance is mine; I will 
repay." See Matt. 5 : 39, 40. 

Fully committed and trusting souls never take 
the care of their possessions out of God's hands 
and put them into the hands of an insurance com- 
pany. (I say the fully committed and trusting soul 
does not do such things. ) If you are not fully com- 
mitted, you may criticize this statement. The whol- 
ly committed soul has turned soul, body, spirit, po^ 
sessions and all, over into the hand of the all-wise, 
all-powerful, ever-present God, Who has said, "The 
sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by 
night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil" 
(Psa. 121:6, 7). Hence, his goods cannot burn 
up or be destroyed without permission from high 
heiuen. 

O, brother, friend! This is what it means to be 
fully submitted to God — all turned over into His 
hands. Without this, there is no constant trust, or 
perfect rest. 



CHAPTEK XXVI II. 

STEPS TO SPIRITUAL SUCCESS 

"But the path of the just is as a shining light, that 
shineth more and more unto the perfect day" (Prov. 4: 18). 

Our purpose in this lesson is to point out the 
road to success in the divine life. It is to be remem- 
bered, as there are necessary steps to success in the 
business and literary life, so there are in the spiritual 
life. And hence these steps must be made, or failure 
will be the outcome. 

We now proceed to mention a few of the essen- 
tial steps to success in the divine life. The first step 
is, keep a fixed purpose. Every soul that would ex- 
cel in God must aim at some certain point on piety's 
high hill; and then purpose in his heart to attain 
it at any cost, though the path to it may lead through 
trouble, sorrow, disappointment and much persecu- 
tion. Hence, without this fixed purpose he will soon 
grow discouraged and give up. Again, he must not 
only purpose attaining to the goal which he sees 
before the vision of his soul, but must also form 
a fixed purpose to ohey and live up to his personal, 
God-given convictions. There are hundreds to-day 
to reason and explain away our God-given convic- 
tions, but only a few to encourage and exhort us 
to live up to them. Hence, for this reason, if souls 
would obey and live up to their God-given convic- 

116 



STEPS TO SPIRITUAL SUCCESS 117 

tions they must take a firm stand against almost 
every being on earth, or else they will be influenced 
by some less spiritual soul to renounce their con- 
victions and compromise. It is said of holy Enoch, 
"he purposed in his heart to walk with God even 
from the days of his youth.'' It is said of Daniel, 
"he purposed in his heart that he would not defile 
himself with the portion of the King's meat, nor 
with the wine which he drank" (Dan. 1:8). 

2. The next thing necessary to succeed in the di- 
vine life is to keep God first in all things. Yes, in 
every plan, in every business arrangement, we should 
put Him first. If we move from one community to an- 
other, we should first consider and see if it will in any 
way dampen our love for God and His services. This 
is the thing that wrecked Lot's family and almost 
cost him his soul; i. e., he moved away from divine 
services and religious influences. How many souls 
have fallen by the way, even in this our day, because 
they moved away from the church to where they 
could not attend the meetings regularly. Their ex- 
cuse was they wanted to have a garden and raise 
chickens, but it was done at the expense of their 
souls, for they grew cold and careless from not at- 
tending the prayer-meetings and mid-week services. 
And, secondly, the children grew up into infidelity 
as the result of not getting to church and Sabbath- 
school. O, friend, if you would make a success in 
this life, you must ever keep God uppermost in every 
detail of life. 

3. The next very important thing is keeping all 
on the altar. O, what a vital point ! This is the axis 
on which your w^hole religious experience revolves. 



118 SELECT FRUITS 

For US to take back one thing we gave to God, or 
draw back in our consecration on any line whatever, 
brings us to a standstill spiritually, and we can 
never proceed an inch until we again lay all on the 
altar. How many souls have lost their experiences 
right here. They put all on the altar for time and 
eternity to become saved, but after they were saved 
and had gone on for a time they began to grow less 
conscientious; hence they began to take things back 
which they laid on the altar of God when they got 
saved. So from that time they began to retrograde 
in their experience, and thus in a little while they 
were committing the most awful sin without any 
scruples whatever. O, how careful we should all be 
to be right at this point, for our experience will leak 
out quicker at this point (I believe) than at any 
other. We should have a set time to balance our 
spiritual books, to see if we are carefully keeping all 
on the altar, and walking in all past and present 
light 

4. The next thing necessary is to continue to 
cultivate a spiritual appetite — a relish for God and 
the things of God. O, how easy it is to lose the 
relish for worship, for secret prayer; for reading 
the Word, etc. Now the way to cultivate this relish 
is : 1. To have a set time for meditation and prayer. 
2. To be a constant attendant at the religious serv- 
ices, but especially the prayer and the testimony 
services, and not only to be present but take an ac- 
tive part at each service. There are many dear ones 
who die spiritually right at this point, viz., failing 
to testify and pray in public. 3. By being a constant 
reader of good, sound, wholesome holiness litera- 



STEPS TO SPIRITUAL SUCCESS 119 

ture. It will prove of great help to read the lives 
and works of such holy men and women as Wesley, 
Fletcher, Knox, Bramwell, Carvosso, Hester Ann 
Kogers, Madam Guyon, and others; to read of the 
experiences of these holy souls who, as it were, 
reached piety's high hill, will greatly intensify the 
soul's desires to reach it also. Praise God ! O, what 
lofty desires it kindles in the soul for God and the 
fulness of love! Beading the life of the sainted 
Fletcher seems to awake every passion of the soul 
and puts into it a ceaseless craving for the fulness 
of God. As Mr. Wesley says, 

*'My heart breaks out in strong desire 

Thy perfect bliss to prove; 
My longing heart is all on fire, 

To be dissolved in love." 

5. The next thing necessary to succeed in the 
divine life is for one to keep cut loose from an un- 
due amount of temporal things. O, how temporal 
things entangle the mind and dampen the cravings 
of the soul for the things from above! They are 
so subtle they adulterate the mind and bias the af- 
fections, and hinder its flight to the mount of God. 
O, holy soul, beware of the earthly entanglements, 
such as fine houses, fine furniture, fine horses and 
carriages, fine clothes, large responsibilities, etc.! 
All these things tend to draw our minds back to 
earthly things, and hinder our rapid flight to per- 
fection's lofty height. 

6. The next thing necessary to excel in the di- 
vine life is to ever keep a rigid self -discipline, for it is 
to be remembered that self is our greatest foe, and 
even after the sinful self-life is crucified there is 



120 SELECT FRUITS 

a legitimate self that must ever be kept under or 
else we become castaways. 

7. The next helpful thing to success is to never 
resent an injury nor an affront. No matter what is 
done or said to us we should never resent or retaliate, 
but "ojfer the other cheeh'' It is said of Jesus, our 
blessed example, "When He was reviled He reviled 
not again." 

8. The next help to success in the divine life 
is : Be always open for reproof. Take it mildly and 
hurribly. Even when you are not in fault, never 
manifest an argumentative or talkative spirit in try- 
ing to clear yourself. Choose rather to be misunder- 
stood than manifest an argumentative spirit. If 
you are misunderstood, bear it mildly. It will all be 
brought to light some day as to who was right, even 
if not until judgment day; that will be in plenty of 
time to get your reward. O, holy soul, move softly 
with God ! 

9. The next necessary thing to divine success 
is, ever remember that no matter how far up the 
road of perfection you g^t, you stand only hy simple 
childlike faith. Many forget this part as they move 
up the divine highway, and commence to lean on 
feelings and Messing s rather than upon God, with 
the same simple trust for everything, like they did 
when first saved. And the result is they lose that 
clearness, that freshness, that victory of faith, and 
evenness of experience. O, holy soul! beware of 
leaning upon feelings, blessings, visions and impres- 
sion, but ever obey and trust God with simple dry 
faith, and you will be kept from an unsettled and 
vacillating experience. 



STEPS TO SPIRITUAL SUCCESS 121 

10. The next thing necessary to succeed in the 
divine life is: Be a man or woman of jew words. 
Always keep a close watch over all of your words. 
Do not practise how much you can say, but how 
little. The apostle says: ^'Study to be quiet." 
Many words, to a holy life, are like taking the cork 
out of a gasoline can; it soon evaporates. Solomon 
says: ^'In the multitude of words there wanteth 
not sin." Jesus says: "But I say unto you, that 
every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give 
account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy 
words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou 
Shalt be condemned'^ (Matt 13:36, 37), 



CHAPTER XXIX. 



LOOKING BACK 



*'No man, having put his hands to the plough, and look- 
ing back, is fit for the kingdom of God" (Luke 9:27). 

Almost in every book in the Bible God has 
dropped a word of warning against "looking back." 
We are all quite familiar with the awful judgment 
that befell Lot's wife as a result of looking hack. 
At this "looking-baek station" lies the secret of many 
a joyless, powerless life, of many a lukewarm, faint- 
hearted, non-victorious Christian life. If our eyes 
were opened to behold the things unseen, no doubt 
we would see the bones of millions who were wrecked 
on this disastrous rock. 

You will notice, He does not say, "He that goeth 
back," but he that looketh hack is not fit for the 
kingdom of God. 

Let us notice some inward defects that "looking 
back" reveals. First, it reveals a break in the af- 
fection. The affection is the first thing that God 
demands of mankind. His first injunction is, "Give 
me thine heart." Hence, for us to love any crea- 
ture or thing more than we do Him, makes us idol- 
aters. 

Suppose a man coming home from his daily oc- 
cupation should find his wife sitting in a corner of 
the room quite gloomy and sad, and on being asked 

122 



LOOKING BACK 123 

what the trouble was, she would answer as follows : 
"I am grieving because I did not marry Martin Hop- 
kins rather than jou, and I daily yearn to be in his 
society again." How do you suppose this husband 
would feel after receiving such a message? Well, 
this is just the way people treat Jesus when they 
look back and hanker for the forbidden things of 
the world. What saith the scripture — "Ye adulter- 
ers and adulteresses, know^ ye not that the friend- 
ship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever 
therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy 
of God" (Jas. 4:4). 

The second thing "looking back" reveals is, a 
greater desire for the things behind than for the 
things in front. It would make a man feel quite bad- 
ly to hear his wife make the remark that she wished 
she was back home with her parents or back with 
her first husband. Well, this is what you say to 
Jesus by looking back. 

Let us now notice some of the many ways of 
looking back. 

1. Grieving and fretting over what we had to 
give up and renounce to become Christians is down- 
right looking back. 

2. For us to regret the fact that we have re- 
ceived great light, and in a roundabout way wish 
that we never had met the preacher or people, or 
read the book or paper, that shone it ilpon us, is 
^'looking haclcJ' 

3. If you secretly wish the Bible did not con- 
demn that certain thing, but left it possible for you 
to do it and at the same time retain the favor of 
God, is a sure indication that you have got your 



124 SELECT FRUITS 

eye on something in the background. How about 
this? Paul says, ''Be content with such things as 
ye have" (Heb. 13:5). 

4. If you to any degree regret the fact that you 
renounced the lodge, the church policies, the picnics, 
the skating rink, the dance halls, etc., you are look- 
ing back. 

5. If you are becoming dissatisfied with the 
plain, simple. Holy Ghost preaching, and have a se- 
cret desire for oratorical, polished, sugar-coated 
preaching, you are surely looking back. Again, if 
you are becoming dissatisfied with the ordinary 
deep spiritual singing and are hankering for classi- 
cal, operatic, sentimental songs, i. e., songs that 
tickle the ear but leave the heart cold, you are not 
only looking back but gone back. 



CHAPTEK XXX. 

OBTAINING AND RETAINING DIVINE HEALING 

In this chapter I wish to give the reader a little 
information on how to obtain and retain Divine 
Healing. 

There are two ways of bringing healing into dis- 
repute and crowding it out of the world. The first 
way is to continually run to the physician and never 
apply to God for it. We must ever remember that 
healing was in the atonement as well as salvation. 
What saith the scripture? "He was wounded for 
our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniqui 
ties: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, 
and with His stripes we are healed" (Isa. 53:5). 
"Himself took our infirmities and bare our sick- 
nesses" (Matt. 8:17). Notwithstanding healing 
being in the atonement, we do not receive it unless 
we believe and apply for it, just as we did to get 
salvation. 

The next way of bringing it into disrepute and 
crowding it out of the world is to receive it and 
afterward doubt it away. By so doing we wreck 
our own faith in it, and also the faith of others. 

The woman who had the issue of blood, spoken of 
in Mark 5 : 25-34, is a beautiful example for those 
seeking healing. Let us observe a few helpful things 
about her. 

125 



126 SELECT FRUITS 

1. She believed Christ had the power to heal her 
completely. She did not let the nature of her disease, 
nor the long period which she had suffered with it, 
stagger her faith, nor limit His power; but she said 
(verse 28), ''If I may touch but His clothes, I shall 
be WHOLE." This is the place where so many fail in 
obtaining complete healing. Because the disease is 
chronic, or because they have had it a long time, or 
because the earthly physicians say it it is incurable, 
they limit God and fail to obtain the blessing. Friend, 
God can heal you of a cancer just as easily as He 
can of the headache. 

2. She did not only believe He could heal her, 
but also believed that He was willing to do so. You 
will notice, in reading the life of Jesus, that He 
never refused to heal a single soul that ever applied 
for healing. Now we are told in Paul's letter to 
the Hebrews, that "He is the same yesterday, to- 
day and forever." Therefore, if He did not refuse 
any then. He will not refuse any now, otherwise this 
passage would not be true. The fault lies in our un- 
belief, not in Him. "All things are possible to him 
that believeth." 

3. She went further still, and did not stop at 
simply believing He was willing, but believed He 
iDould. "If I may touch His clothes I SHALL be 
whole." Now, friends, you may have been anointed 
time and time again for healing, but always failed 
to obtain it. No doubt the trouble lies right here. 
You made feelings your foundation, rather than 
faith. After the oil was dropped on your head, you 
tried yourself to see if you felt any better. So as 
you did not feel any better you concluded that you 



OBTAINING AND RETAINING DIVINE HEALING 127 

were no better. But this woman did not do this. 
Her confidence was based upon touching Him and 
not on how she would feel. If you would say, after 
reading J as. 5 : 15, 16, and meeting the conditions, 
^'Jesus heals me this moment," and would stick to 
it, you would surely be made whole. 

4. The next thing that is worthy of your atten- 
tion is the great opposition she met in reaching the 
Savior. Mark says, ^'She came in the press.^^ If we 
would get healed, there are lots of things to press 
against. The first is the doctor and remedies. The 
second is public opinion. The third is past failures 
to obtain healing. The fourth is future fears, i. e., 
fearing the disease will return again after you de- 
clared it was gone. But do not let any of these 
things move you. 

The next information I wish to give is, how to 
keep healing after receiving it. The first point is, 
'believe and count it done from the moment you are 
prayed with and anointed, no matter how you feel. 
The devil will be sure to attack your feelings for 
several days after you are healed, and sometimes 
cause you to feel apparent symptoms of the disease, 
but do not give in to him. He is only trying to 
break down your faith. You must stand your 
ground and count it done, and thus, after a week or 
two of testing and failing to destroy your faith, he 
will leave you again. James says, "Resist the devil 
and he will flee from you." 

The second thing necessary to retain it is to con- 
tinually act your faith, i. e., act like you are healed. 
Do not lounge around and act like a sick person, but 
get up and act your faith. As soon as Jesus healed 



128 SELECT FRUITS 

the man at the pool, he put him to doing something 
— "Take up thj bed and walk-' — that is, act like a 
loell man. 

The third thing necessary to retain healing is to 
testify to it every opportunity you get. Mr. Fletcher 
lost the experience of holiness five times by not testi- 
fying to it. The Psalmist says, "Make known His 
deeds among the people." Hundreds have lost heal- 
ing at this point, and after they have lost it the 
devil will tell them they never had it in the first 
place and thus discourage them from seeking it 
again, but if we tell it, our faith will be strength- 
ened, our healing perfected and others encouraged 
to come to God for healing. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

GETTING OUT OF DIVINE ORDER 

In this chapter I want to call the reader's at- 
tention to a few thoughts on being out of divine 
order. It will take eternity and the day of judg- 
ment to fully reveal the awful importance of this 
subject. 

Satan strives to do one of three things with every 
soul that gets saved. His first effort is to get them 
back into sin. The second is to get them into error 
and fanaticism. His third effort, after not succeed- 
ing in the foregoing two, is to get them out of Divine 
order. 

It may seem at first a rather extravagant expres- 
sion; however, I feel safe in making the statement, 
that nearly one-half of the Christians are, to some 
extent, out of Divine Order. It is to be remembered, 
we do not always have to commit sin to get out of 
Divine Order. There are hundreds who enjoy some 
grace that are greatly out of Divine Order. Let us 
briefly notice a few ways of getting out of Divine 
Order. 

The first is, a man or woman who is called to 
do the work of the Lord, who is failing to follow this 
calling, but is doing secular work instead, with no 
intention of going into the ministry. This man is 
as much out of Divine Order as Jonah when he was 

129 



130 SELECT FRUITS 

swallowed by the whale. Look out, brother! The 
whales are not all dead. 

A second way of getting out of Divine Order is 
to go too deeply in debt for a farm, a house, furni- 
ture, etc., and thus overload ourselves with debt and 
responsibilities, so much so that we lose the burden 
for souls, the spirit of prayer and all interest in the 
work of God. 

A third way of getting out of Divine Order is 
to move out of vital touch with the church and go 
away to the suburbs or to the country to raise 
chickens and cultivate a garden, which often proves 
a curse to yourself and family. The children grow 
up heathens through not being able to attend the 
Sabbath-school, the poor wife loses all the grace she 
had through not being able to attend any of the 
prayer and class meetings, and the husband becomes 
a dead, dry, joyless, graceless, fireless, powerless, 
lifeless, Sunday church member. 

A fourth way of getting out of Divine Order is 
to deliberately resign from a religious office in the 
church without a legitimate excuse. We often see 
people resign from being class-leader, Sunday-school 
superintendent, secretary, prayer-meeting leader, 
etc., with no real excuse, only they are tired. This 
slip-shod business grieves God and causes one to be 
lean in his soul. 

A fifth way of getting out of Divine Order is for 
one to sever his connection with all churches and not 
belong to anything. This is almost a sure way to 
backsliding, sin and hell. I am perfectly in harmony 
with people separating themselves from all churches 
that indorse sin and worldliness; but on the other 



GETTING OUT OF DIVINE ORDER 131 

hand, I believe in finding the cleanest church pos- 
sible, and joining it heart and hand. 

Note a few things that result from being out of 
Divine Order. 

First, an uneven, vacillating experience. This 
is often the secret of why some people are so waver- 
ing and unsettled in their experience. The trouble 
is, they are not in the center of God's will. 

A second result is, non-successf ulness in temporal 
matters. How many times have we seen people 
who were out of Divine Order trying to make things 
go in the business world, but every now and then a 
horse would die, a wagon break down, a barn burn, 
a cow go astray, a pocketbook get lost, etc., etc. 
All of this ofttimes is the sad result of being out of 
Divine Order. 

The next thought I wish to call the attention of 
the reader to is, the sad end of three Bible char- 
acters who were out of Divine Order. It is to be 
remembered, they did not reach this state in one 
day. 

The first was Lot, who lost everything in Sodom 
and barely escaped with his life. 

The second was Balaam, the compromising 
prophet, who was finally slain by the children of 
Israel. 

The next was Sampson, who was captured by 
the Philistines and made an object of sport, shame 
and disgrace. 

O, brother, sister, it is impossible to succeed un- 
less you keep in Divine Order. 



CHAPTER XXXIl. 



SANCTITY IN BEHAVIOR 



"Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon 
thou standest is holy ground" (Ex. 3:5). 

We now come to one of the most blessed stages 
of Christian experience on this side of eternity. 
However, it is rarely found among the so-called 
Christians of modern times. There are many peo- 
ple who testify, make loud professions, go to church 
and even live clean and straight, but it is only now 
and then we meet one who is baptized and filled 
with holy modesty, heavenly solemnity and Christ- 
like sanctity. 

What the fragrance is to the rose, sanctity is to 
the holy soul. This is one of the graces which make 
their possessor as ''a city set on a hill, which cannot 
be hid." 

Let us notice the conduct of souls filled with this 
unearthly treasure. 

1. They are controlled by a sweet, sacred spirit 
all the time, and they continually move as in the 
immediate presence of the great God. They are 
filled with such a sacred awe and heavenly tran- 
quility, until the very air they breathe, and the com- 
munity in which they live (so to speak) seem sur- 
charged with the glory of God. O glorious life of 
bliss divine! 

132 



SANCTITY IN BEHAVIOR 133 

2. Their daily walk. They are not only saved 
from sin and straying into forbidden paths, but are 
so conquered and refined by divine grace that there 
is not a vestige of looseness or pride, or self, or light- 
ness, to be seen about them. But they are lowly, 
patient, sweet and heavenly. They never (Storm 
around the house, nor slam doors, nor scold, nor talk 
loud and boisterous. Their conduct is as saintly and 
Christlike in the home every day of the week as it 
is at church on Sunday. 

3. Their attire. If we judge by the way modern 
professed Christians adorn themselves, we would 
conclude there was nothing in Christianity. And un- 
til we convince the unsaved that these fashion-loving, 
proud, haughty, worldly-minded church members are 
no more Christians than they are angels, our effort 
to get them saved is a failure. But the people of 
whom I speak, who live as under the eye of a visible 
God, are not only saved from such heathenism as 
wearing jewelry, feathers, flowers, beads, silks, 
satins, etc., etc., but are filled with such a heavenly 
humility that they are scrupulous not to wear a 
conspicuous or gaudy color. They refrain from wear- 
ing anything which does not render comfort, and on 
the other hand they are patterns for neatness, clean- 
liness and good manners. 

4. Their conversation. They are not only saved 
from lying and unclean ribaldry, but from all joking, 
all idle, nonsensical talk, all street slang, all ^'by- 
words," all harsh speaking, all "Santa Claus" lies, 
etc. And their conversation is godly and uniform, 
all the time, like that of the Son of God (1 John 
2:6). 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

THE POTTER AND THE CLAY 

"The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, say- 
ing, Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I 
will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to 
the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the 
wheel. And the vessel that he made with day was marred 
in the hand of the potter; so he made it again another 
vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it" (Jer. 
18:1-4). 

We have before us a striking picture lesson of 
God's method in dealing with souls. 

The Bible is the geography of Christian expe- 
rience, and if properly studied would greatly help 
us in locating ourselves, and also help us to recog- 
nize the different climes, hills, valleys, sloughs and 
deserts that we often pass, as we journey homeward. 
We are often perplexed and confused over the va- 
rious and sudden changes in our spiritual climate. 
Besides w^e are often confused and perplexed when 
we suddenly descend from one of Beulah's high hills 
of ecstasy into the valley below. But if we are fa- 
miliar with the geography of Christian experience 
we can readily locate ourselves and thus save our- 
selves from many a storm of doubt and fear. Oft- 
times when new beginners in the Christian life make 
one of these sudden changes from the mount of 
ecstasy to the vale of duty, or the wilderness of 

134 



THE POTTER AND THE CLAY 135 

temptation, they are so confused and perplexed that 
they almost cast away their confidence and conclude 
that they are backslidden. 

Let us closely observe a few points of interest 
found in this lesson. We will notice, God here 
likens Himself to the potter and Israel to the clay. 
But for our general edification, I will enlarge upon 
the subject. 

My purpose in this lesson is to point out the two 
works of grace, viz.. Justification and Sanctification, 
and also mention a few methods God uses in pre- 
paring souls for His service. 

First, the clay had to be gathered and separated 
from the clay bank and brought to the potter. Just 
so it is with souls who get converted. They are 
separated from the world and are brought to the 
Savior and remain in His house and favor. 

Second, the clay, after reaching the potter's 
hands, had to be thoroughly cleansed from all un- 
congenial substances, such as gravel, sticks, weeds, 
etc. Is not this an excellent picture of the justified 
man or woman? After being brought to Christ and 
enjoying His favor, there is a substance within them 
that has to be removed. David found it out in the 
51st Psalm. Isaiah found it out in the 6th chap- 
ter of Isaiah. The disciples found it out on the day 
of Pentecost, and millions of God's children in every 
age have made the same discovery. 

Third, the clay had to be made passive, so that 
it could be easily fashioned. So it is when the soul 
is cleansed and filled with the Holy Ghost. It be- 
comes perfectly passive in the hand of the heavenly 
Potter. Therefore it is willing to go anywhere, be 



136 SELECT FRUITS 

anything, do anything and suffer anything for its 
blessed Lord. 

A fourth point of interest about the clay is, the 
potter placed it upon a wheel, to fashion and shape 
it for a special service. This is one of the most diffi- 
cult lessons sanctified people are called to learn, 
viz., the wheel lesson. When they get saved and sanc- 
tified, they expect to go to heaven on a bed of roses 
(so to speak). They do not expect to ever have 
temptations, trials or hardships. They think be- 
cause they are living right and aiming to do right 
by all mankind, that they will be loved by all and 
not opposed by any, but it is a great mistake. 

The question may arise here. Of what does this 
fashioning on the wheel consist? The spiritual defi- 
nition of this "wheel" is, "A chain of circumstances.'^ 
Now, since the lives of Job and Joseph so accurately 
and beautifully described the fashioning on the 
wheel; since they were both sanctified, holy men, let 
us notice a few points of interest in their lives. 

Observe! Job's experience and trials were large- 
ly on external things. Therefore we will notice the 
different "external wheels'' the Divine Potter used 
in shaping and making him a monument of patience 
to all generations. 

First, God put him on the wheel of poverty. It 
is a common saying among some people that "if 
people are sanctified and holy as they claim, they 
would have plenty of everything," but this is not 
scriptural. Job and Paul were among the best men 
that ever lived, and they both took a course on 
"poverty wheel.'' Paul said, "As poor, yet making 



THE POTTER AND THE CLAY 137 

many rich ; as having nothing, and yet possessing all 
things" (2 Cor. 6:10). 

The second wheel which God placed holy, sancti- 
fied Job upon was affliction's wheel. There is not a 
more trying and testing place in the catalogue of 
the Christian experience, nor is there a greater in- 
centive to fretting and complaining, than when the 
body is racked with pain and affliction. But God's 
grace proves sufficient in this trying place. Some 
fanatics teach that if a man has genuine holiness he 
will never get sick, but that teaching does not har- 
monize with Job's experience. 

The third wheel on which the Divine Potter 
placed holy Job was the wheel of domestic trouble. 
Job's wife married him (no doubt) for his wealth 
and beauty, but when he lost them both, and was 
sitting in the ashes covered with running sores, she 
lost her love for him and commenced to make trouble 
in the home. 

There comes a time with every true follower of 
Christ, when he will have to fully decide who will 
have the preeminence in his heart, God or his family 
and loved ones. Many a good man and woman has 
failed to stand the test here; when the final issue 
came, it seemed that if they would continue to stick 
to God and the ^^narrow way" they were going to 
lose their husband, wife, home, relations, etc., etc. 
But Job, notwithstanding, sitting on the ash heap 
and covered with sores from head to foot, and 
sneered at by his wife and mocked by his friends, 
chose God and kept the "family god" dethroned. 
Keader, is God finding this loyalty in you? 



138 SELECT FRUITS 

Now since the lives of Job and Joseph were our 
object lessons, let us proceed to paraphrase the life 
of Joseph. Where Job's suffering was brought about 
bj the loss of external things, Joseph's were brought 
about bj unalterable circumstances and internal 
grief. God knows perfectly well how to arrange tests 
and circumstances to get us ready to sit upon a 
throne. O reader, do let Him have His way with 
you! 

Let us briefly notice some of the wheels God used 
in shaping Joseph for the throne. The first was the 
wheel of sorrow. Hundreds have had a similar call, 
but through it all God's grace has proved sufficient! 

The second wheel that was used in fashioning 
and shaping holy Joseph was the wheel of sexual 
charm. God does not save souls and put them in a 
bandbox nor a hothouse. He sanctifies them and 
throws them out into the world to be proved and 
tested. There are but few holy souls in the world 
who have not been thoroughly tested on the wheel 
of sexual charm. But it takes all of this to get us 
ready for the throne. Hallelujah! 

The third wheel upon which Joseph was placed 
was the wheel of slander and loss of reputation. 
Indeed, this is a bitter pill to a soul who is striving 
to do right and have every one believe in him. But 
God's grace proved sufficient in this trying and diffi- 
cult place. 

The fourth and last wheel that we take time to 
mention here, on which he was placed, was the wheel 
of "imprisonment,'' i. e., "the shut-in life.'' This, no 
doubt, tried Joseph's faith, patience, and grace more 
than any other. But God helped him to hold still 



THE POTTER AND THE CLAY 139 

and be true in this difficult place. God sometimes 
shuts us in and spoils our plans, and ties owr hands, 
and holds us still until He can prove to us that His 
grace is sufficient to keep us everywhere and under 
all circumstances. ^ 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 



BLIGHTED SOUL BLOSSOMS 



As there are numberless hidden sources in our 
bodies which greatly assist in the perpetuation of 
the natural life, so there are in the spiritual life. 
There are many inward laws and conditions which 
must have a special care and attention if we would 
retain spiritual life and be fruitful. 

It is said of fruit trees, that of all the thousands 
of blossoms which decorate their boughs in spring- 
time, there are only about one-third that abide and 
bear fruit; the others are blighted by the various 
changes of the weather and fall to the ground. 
Where this is true in the natural world, it is also 
equally true in the spiritual world. 

Now we who are Christians are quite familiar 
with the inild, soft, gentle, prompting of the Spirit, 
deep down in the soul. I do not mean that rude, 
griping, shocking of conscience that we feel when 
disobedient. Neither do I mean that strong, resist- 
less impression which we sometimes feel calling us 
to certain lines of duty. But I mean that mildy faint, 
soft conviction that we feel over certain things and 
on certain lines, and at certain times even when we 
are greatly blessed. That, which fills the soul with 
a sense of carefulness, keenness, watchfulness, sober- 
ness, etc. These touches and checks of the Spirit 

140 



BLIGHTED SOUL BLOSSOMS 141 

are often so faint that they do not leave behind them 
any condemnation or special conviction. However, 
we feel them and readily recognize them to be from 
the Spirit of God. 

Now for our special edification I have given these 
mild checks and faint impressions, the name "Soul 
Blossoms;" hence to stifle, blight, quench, or check 
them means that we become unfruitful. There are 
hundreds of pigmy Christians in the land to-day who 
would, no doubt, be giants for God if they would re- 
frain from blighting these ''Soul Blossoms" and be- 
gin to implicitly obey the Holy Spirit. 

I now offer a few suggestions on how to preserve 
the life of the ''Soul Blossoms." 

First, be careful to avoid quenching and smother- 
ing that mild, gentle call and inward drawing to 
deeper reverence for God and holy things. It is ap- 
palling to see the lack of reverence, awe, and respect 
manifested among many of God's children these days. 
It is sometimes done in the light and flippant way 
they sing religious songs. It is also seen in the loose, 
careless way they use the name of the Deity; again 
it is manifested in their light, careless behavior in 
the house of worship. But if these careless and 
thoughtless Christians would acknowledge the whole 
truth, they would say that they felt a soft, mild, 
tender, check within while engaged in this sacrile- 
gious conduct. 

A second way of preserving the "Soul Blossoms" 
is to carefully guard against quenching and stifling 
that high-class conviction and inward yearning for 
deeper piety, more advanced light, and the whole 
image of God. If the hearts of all Christians were 



142 SELECT FRUITS 

visible to our gaze, we no doubt would see hundreds 
in our own communitj who have the same convic- 
tions and holy aspirations that heaved in the breast 
of Saint Paul, John Wesley, and the sainted John 
Fletcher. But as there is no one to draw them out 
and urge them on to Beulah's heights, they choke 
out these holy blossoms and high-class appetites and 
settle down to the ordinary plane of Christian living. 

A third way to preserve the ''Soul Blossoms" is 
to give strict attention to the soft, gentle call to 
deeper devotion. It is remarkable how faithful the 
blessed Holy Spirit is in reminding us of the secret 
prayer hour, the special day of prayer and fasting, 
and the ''new light" shown upon us from day to day. 
Besides, He at the same time kindles an all-con- 
suming desire in our souls for closer and deeper com- 
munion with God. Hence, if these faint drawings 
are yielded to, the soul will be led on to greater 
heights and depths in God; but if they are smoth- 
ered and choked out, the soul will gradually dry up 
and become sickly and unfruitful. 

A fourth way of preserving these tender "Soul 
Blossoms" is to carefully avoid ignoring and quench- 
ing that faint inward drawing to a greater respect 
for the Lord's day, i. e., the Sabbath. It is a lament- 
able fact, and a very true one, that the Sabbath in 
our country has lost its sacredness, and men and 
women have lost their respect for it. Even people 
professing to be Christians profane the day of the 
Lord by railroad traveling, buying, selling, bathing, 
shaving, writing letters, sending telegrams, and 
many other things that are not right in the sight 
of God. Notwithstanding this being a fact, if these 



BLIGHTED SOUL BLOSSOMS 143 

very people would acknowledge the whole truth, 
they would confess that they had received an in- 
ward inkling that these things were wrong. 

A fifth way of preserving these ''Soul Blossoms" 
is to avoid drowning that soft, faint check that 
makes one feel unpleasant, uneasy and peculiar when 
talking too much or spending too much time in com- 
pany with sinners and non-spiritual church mem- 
bers. 

The next way of preserving these tender ''Soul 
Blossoms" is to quickly yield to that soft inward 
voice which constantly reminds us to gauge and 
temper our words, so that we never speak harshly, 
or ever exaggerate, or utter an unkind word. I ad- 
mit Christian people do sometimes speak short and 
quick; notwithstanding that being a fact, they al- 
ways have to ignore and silence that inward check 
to do so. 

A seventh way of preserving these "Soul Blos- 
soms" is to quickly heed the soft check and faint 
voice reminding you to not "speak evil of a living 
soul upon earth ;" but "say nothing but good of the 
dead nor the absent." 

The next way to preserve these blossoms is to 
heed promptly that faint inward dictation and re- 
proof regarding what you are to wear as a child of 
God and an heir of heaven. You may sometimes rush 
heedlessly by these checks and put on jewelry or 
some needless adornment, but if you would give ear 
to that faint, inward soul cry, you would lay them 
aside and be a plain pilgrim all the way to the judg- 
ment. 

Now remember, I am not trying to compel you 



144 SELECT FRUITS 

to do this, or do that. I am simply reminding you 
of something which the Holy Spirit has told you 
about long ago. Wesley says, "All of these things 
God writes upon truly awakened hearts." 

The next and last way to preserve the "Soul Blos- 
soms," that I take time and space to mention here, 
is, be careful to heed the faint, inward prompter to 
punctuality and truthfulness. It gives one inward 
pain to see how slack and slothful some professed 
Christians are in keeping their word, paying bills, 
and meeting their engagements, etc. Even some 
evangelists will make an appointment to be at a cer- 
tain convention, revival or camp-meeting, and with 
the most trivial excuse will fail to come, and thus 
disappoint hundreds of people. I am sure if these 
dear ones would carefully and strictly obey the soft, 
faint prompter within, they would never do such 
a thing unless it be in a case of extreme necessity. 

O, brother! sister! let us give special attention 
to nourishing and cultivating the "Soul Blossoms," 
that we may bring forth "much fruit" to the glory of 
God. Amen. 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

PROGRESSION AND RETROGRESSION 

After a close observation of nearly twenty years, 
I have found the old maxim, "There is no standing 
still in religion," to be invariably true. It is also 
generally true, that if we are one inch below our 
highest watermark we are on back ground, and be- 
low our privilege. If we would take a religious in- 
ventory in all the orthodox churches throughout the 
land, we would be surprised at the large percentage 
we would find on ^'tach ground'' 

I once read of a party of men who rowed across 
the river to a little village to obtain strong drink, 
and on reaching the other shore they tied the boat 
and went up to the saloon. After spending several 
hours there, drinking and having a general good 
time (as they call it) they decided to go down to 
the boat and row back across the river. On reaching 
the boat, as they were all intoxicated, they forgot 
to untie the boat, but simply got into it and began 
pulling on the oars. They kept this up the balance 
of the night, and when day broke they became con- 
scious of the fact that they had not untied the boat, 
and had simply fluttered in one place all the 
time. 

The only difference between these men and thou- 
sands of church members is that they were flutter- 

145 



146 SELECT FRUITS 

ing in one place, but the church members are drift- 
ing down stream continually. 

Let us first notice a few indications of progress, 
viz., of growth in grace. 

1. An increase of holy calmness and spiritual 
balance, under all circumstances; that which never 
gets upset and blustery over the various happenings 
of life. 

2. A growing passiveness in the hand of God. 
Some one has well said, "God could thrash a moun- 
tain with a worm, provided He could get the wiggle 
out of the worm." The soul who is making progress 
in God has ceased to iciggle, shrink and dictate to 
God, but is as plastic in His hands as clay in the 
hands of the potter. Reader, are you in this place? 

3. A deep, undisturbed sweetness in the soul, 
and a soft mildness of manner when under pressure 
and temptation, is another sign of spiritual ad- 
vancement. 

4. A keen eye to detect the fine lines of sin and 
compromise, and an increasing disgust for formality 
and worldliness in every form, are sure indications 
of spiritual advancement. 

5. Another indication of progress is the growth 
of a self-sacrificing, self -forgetting disposition; that 
which is more interested in the happiness and com- 
forts of others than of itself. 

6. The next indication of progress, that presses 
its way into my mind, is when the soul reaches a 
stage where the mind is constantly stayed on Christ 
and heavenly things. The mind to a man is what the 
engine is to the train ; it draws the whole man after 
it. Solomon says, "As a man thinketh in his heart, 



PROGRESSION AND RETROGRESSION 147 

SO is he." Isaiah says, "Thou wilt keep him in per- 
fect peace whose mind is stayed on thee." No soul can 
make any progress in the Divine life with a confused, 
double mind. Hence it is a sure sign of advance- 
ment when the mind is kept stayed on heavenly 
things. 

Let us briefly notice a few indications of Ketro- 
gression. 

1. A lack of relish for and interest in secret 
prayer is a sure indication that the soul is growing 
cold and estranged from God. 

2. A second sign of retrogression is a careless, 
thoughtless, non-conscientious spirit, which can 
strain the truth, speak short, drive close bargains, 
jest, and tell funny stories, etc., etc. This is a sure 
indication that the soul is on the downward grade. 

3. Retrogression is also indicated through a dis- 
position that leans toward and trifles with tempta- 
tion. It is to be remembered that we never reach a 
sphere in the Christian life where we do not have 
to watch, pray, and keep at a distance from sin and 
temptation. Failure here has caused the downfall 
of many an honest soul. 

4. A fourth indication of Retrogression is seen 
in a gluttonous, self-indulging spirit. I believe I 
am safe in saying that self-indulgence is one of the 
greatest enemies to godliness of the twentieth cen- 
tury. 

5. A fifth indication of Retrogression is notice- 
able in a disposition to evil-speaking and talebear- 
ing. People seem to forget that it is just as wrong 
to speak evil and carry tales as it is to steal (Jas. 
2:10). 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 

SOME THINGS TO BE FORGOTTEN 

There are many experiences, reproofs, blessings, 
and various combats that we have received along the 
Christian pathway which are very necessary to be 
kept in mind. On the other hand, there are many, 
many things that will be a great help to us if for- 
gotten. Paul in writing to the Philippians said, 
''But this one thing I do, forgetting those things 
which are behind, and reaching forth unto those 
things which are before, I press toward the mark, 
for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ 
Jesus" (Phil. 3:13, 14). 

Let us notice a few things that will prove help- 
ful if forgotten. 

1. There are many ways that Satan has to tease, 
harass, and taunt the children of God, but one of 
his most successful ways is bringing up and rc- 
minding them of past sins. He will try to confuse 
and throw them into perplexity b}^ telling them that 
^'all of their past sins are not forgiven, but will rise 
against them and condemn them in the judgment." 
Or he will try to distress and tease them by making 
them believe that they are snubbed and slighted by 
the better classes of Christians, etc. But, dear one, 
do not give place to him for a single moment. He 
is simply trying to discourage you. Whenever he 

148 



SOME THINGS TO BE FORGOTTEN 149 

comes and presents this thought, quote the follow- 
ing passages of scripture to him: "As far as the 
east is from the west, so far hath he removed our 
transgressions from us" (Psa. 103:12). "I have 
blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions and 
as a cloud thy sins'^ (Isa. 44: 22). 

2. A second thing we are to forget is our past 
blunders and mistakes. I admit that they are quite 
grievous and embarrassing sometimes, and it seems 
as if we could never live them down. But since God 
has forgiven and put them under the blood, let us 
forgive ourselves, forget them, take heart, and press 
on. 

3. A third thing to be forgotten is the past in- 
juries and mistreatments received from those who 
opposed and hated us. Retaining such things in our 
memory is the liothed in which the slips of malice, 
hate, and ill-will grow. 

4. The fourth thing it would be well for us to 
forget is the sins, mistakes, and blunders of others. 
Remember, there are many things connected with 
your life and makeup that others have to forgive, 
overlook, and endure ; would it not be well for you to 
manifest the same degree of charity, and at least for- 
give and forget the blunders and mistakes of your 
fellow men? 



CHAPTER XXXVII. 



^^RIVERS OF LIVING WATER^^ 



The blessed Holy Spirit has used many striking 
figures in the Word to illustrate the fulness of His 
blessings to the human race. In the 12th chapter of 
Isaiah He likens the grace of God to many wells, but 
in St. John's Gospel, chapter 7, verse 38, He compares 
it to rivers of water. 

If Satan cannot hinder us from pressing our 
way through and getting saved, he will make a 
desperate effort to hinder our faith, beat us back and 
keep us on half -rations. If we will be Christians, he 
wants us to be meager, sickly, dwarfy ones. But 
God's thought for us is to be like ^'watered gardens," 
"springs of water" filled with "rivers of living 
water," etc. The term "rivers" suggests several 
thoughts to the mind of a careful reader. Note them 
as follows: 

First, it calls our attention to the inexhaustible 
supply of grace, benefits, and blessings that God 
has in store for His children. Many of us pray as 
if we were afraid of asking too much of God, but 
Jesus says, "If ye ask anything in my name, I will 
do it" (John 14:14). Remember, reader, "Giving 
doth not impoverish God, neither does withholding 
enrich Him." 

The next thought that the "river'' suggests is the 

150 



^''rivers of living water^^ 151 

unrestrained supply that God sends upon every obe- 
dient heart. I admit there are many things being 
done these days by men and money, but thank God! 
there is one thing they cannot do, and that is, stop 
the blessing of God from coming down upon his 
obedient children. Herod tried it in Jerusalem, but 
the results of damming it up caused it to burst over 
and flow to the ends of the earth. The men of Philip- 
pi tried to dam it up, by putting Paul and Silas in 
jail, but the thing commenced fermenting and burst 
open the jail and freed all of the prisoners. The 
old church tried it in the days of Wesley and White- 
field, but the thing broke out and washed all the 
bounds of time, planted the cross in every land, and 
swept millions of blood-washed souls into glory. 

A third thought suggested by the ''river" is, it 
causes vegetation and fruitage. It is said the reason 
there were so many famines in Egypt was because 
the river Nile sometimes ran low and did not over- 
flow her banks. At this point, no doubt, we can 
trace the cause of the famine which is now upon us ; 
it is because the church has failed to get the great 
outpouring of the Spirit, as was taught by Saint 
Paul, John Wesley, Fletcher and others. 

Eeader are you sanctified wholly, enjoying the 
fulness of the Spirit? If not, it is your indispens- 
able duty to God and man to be so. Will you begin 
from this hour to cry mightily to God until He 
sanctifies you wholly, and thus makes you a river of 
living water to the many perishing souls around you ? 



CHAPTER XXXVIII. 



TEMPTING THE LORD 



"Tliou Shalt not tempt the Lord thy God" (Matt. 4; 7). 

Our readers are no doubt quite familiar with the 
above text, as it is a direct quotation from Deut. 
6 : 16. The Savior here used it in thwarting the 
temptations of the devil. If we modernize the lan- 
guage of the text it would read as follows: ^'Thou 
shalt not presumptuously test God/' There is a 
world of meaning in these few words. In them lies 
the why millions of prayers are yet unanswered, 
numberless sick bodies not healed, and the promises 
of God doubted and brought into disrepute in every 
land. 

Among the many sins, for which men shall be 
grievously dealt with at the Judgment Bar, will 
be the sin of misrepresenting God and placing His 
word in a false light before men. To give us a full 
description to what extent this is being done in 
the world to-day, it would require an infinite mind. 
Let us notice some of the ways by which people tempt 
God. 

First, for one to venture too near the border line 
of sin, or to unnecessarily expose himself to tempta- 
tion, expecting the grace of God to keep him, is 
downright tempting God. Hundreds of souls have 
been snared at this point ; and after they had gotten 

152 



TEMPTING THE LORD 153 

into sin, blamed God for not keeping them saved. It 
is to be remembered that, in order for God to keep 
us saved, we must cooperate with Him. He will not 
keep us saved independent of our assistance. We 
have often heard men, who were saved from drink, 
testifying how near they could go to the saloon and 
not suffer any hurt. We did not doubt their testi- 
mony; however, we felt like admonishing them to 
stay as far away from it as possible. 

A second way of tempting God is for one to care- 
lessly expose himself to disease, by not using proper 
caution, or not dressing or eating properly, and at 
the same time expect God to keep him well, or heal 
him when he gets sick. When such persons are 
anointed and prayed for, and fail to get healed, they 
are led to doubt the promises of God and take issue 
against divine healing. The thing they should do is 
to repent and ask God to forgive them for their 
negligence and carelessness, and then be anointed 
and prayed for, and He no doubt would heal 
them. 

Third. The next way by which this can be done 
is for us to pray to God to do what we can do for our- 
selves. For instance, I get a splinter in my hand 
which can be easily removed with a needle or a pair 
of tweezers; for me to leave the splinter in and 
ask God to make it come out is downright presump- 
tion and an act of tempting God. The Bible teaches 
us very clearly that God will not do for us what 
we can do for ourselves. Jesus, at the tomb of Laza- 
rus, could have removed the stone, but said, ''Take 
ye away the stone." And after calling Lazarus back 
to life He could as well have removed the grave- 



154 SELECT FRUITS 

clothes, but He said to those who stood around, 
"Loose him, and let him go" (John 11:44). 

A fourth way in which this can be done is for 
one to publicly ask the church to pray that God may 
help him on a certain line, or grant him a certain 
thing, when at the same time, down in his heart, he 
is not willing to meet the required conditions by 
which that thing can be obtained. Therefore, in 
making such a request a person is guilty of commit- 
ting two sins : First, he commits sin by causing the 
pilgrims to lose confidence in the promises of God; 
for after they have fasted and prayed that he might 
grant the desired thing, and the individual fails 
to obtain it, they would be tempted to doubt God's 
faithfulness in keeping His word; while all along 
the individual was to blame and not God. Secondly, 
they commit sin by dissembling and playing the 
hypocrite in the church of God. 

Fifth. Another noticeable way in which this is 
done is people setting stakes and appointing certain 
days by which time God is to do this or do that. It 
is to be kept in mind that we cannot set stakes for 
God or bring Him to our terms. It is true He has 
promised in the Bible that He would come to our 
relief and help us out, but as to lohen, where and 
how, He has reserved that to His unerring judgment. 

"It may not be in your time 
And it may not be in mine; 
But in His own appointed time 
The Lord will answer your prayer." 

Sixth. We can tempt God by retaining idols In 
the trunk and dresser drawers, such as jewelry, fash- 
ionable clothing, headgear, lodge regalia, and such 



TEMPTING THE LORD 155 

things. If it is wrong to wear them, it is equally 
wrong to harbor and hold on to them. Where is the 
in an or woman to be found who would not object to 
wife or husband cherishing and holding on to the 
former lover's love letters ? 

A seventh way of tempting God is sometimes seen 
at the altar, when workers are praying with souls. 
They often make such remarks as the following to 
God: "O Lord, this soul has given up everything; 
do come and bless him, for you promised to come 
and bless us when we give up all." These enthused 
workers seem to forget the fact that the all-wise 
God knows when a soul has given up all, and is on 
blessing ground, much better than we do. I shall 
never forget a backslidden preacher who came to 
the altar some years ago, and was earnestly pray- 
ing, weeping and pleading to God for mercy. From 
all appearances, he was deeply in earnest and had 
surrendered everything. But the fire would not fall, 
and all heaven remained silent to his importunate 
plea. We workers felt a little tried with God because 
He did not hurry to the relief of this confessing, re- 
penting, weeping, struggling soul. Finally, after an 
hour's struggle, one of the workers was led to ask 
him if he belonged to any secret order; and if so, 
would he give it up? Ah! here was the secret of 
failure. Here was the ^'Golden Wedge" that was 
locking the wheel of Zion. He first said, "Yes" faint- 
ly, but no fire fell. He repeated it a little stronger, 
but still no fire fell. He repeated it more loudly yet, 
but all heaven remained silent. Finally, he screamed 
at the top of his voice and from the very bottom of 
his heart, 'Ye s Lord ! ! !" Then the heavens were 



156 SELECT FRUITS 

unlocked in an instant, and torrents of fire, glory, 
and power swept like lightning upon him and all 
the workers, that almost blest them out of them- 
selves (so to speak). 

Lastly, another way by which this can be done is 
for us, when giving in our testimony at the class or 
testimony meeting, to complain of not having felt as 
much of the presence of the Lord, nor realized as 
much of the help of the Spirit, the past week, as we 
have heretofore, when at the same time we are aware 
of the fact that we have not been walking in the light, 
or taking up our crosses, or strictly obeying the 
Spirit, as we should have. However, we do not tell 
this part of it, but only say, "God is not blessing us 
as of old," and stop there. Hence, we set God in a 
false light before all the people. We make it ap- 
pear that He is to blame ; which is not true. If we 
would be honest with God, the people, and our own 
souls, we would add the following to our testimony : 
"The reason I am not blessed is this — I have not 
obeyed the Spirit nor walked in the light as I 
should, nor as I once did, therefore I am to blame 
and not God." 

O Lord, give us sufficient grace and wisdom that 
we may not be guilty of the sin of tempting Thee ! 



CHAPTEE XXXIX. 

FAITH^ HOPE AND LOVE 

Here we have the three essential graces required 
in making the trip from earth to heaven. If we 
closely examine these three w^e will find they con- 
tain every other grace written in the catalogue of 
Christian experience. 

My purpose in presenting this subject is to call 
the reader's attention to the various offices which 
these three graces occupy, and also give a few 
thoughts on how to operate them, since it is possible 
to be in possession of a grace and not know how to 
use it. 

Let us first notice that great factor, Faith. As 
some one has well said, "The world has yet to know 
what God can do with a man of faith," i. e., a man 
who implicitly believes in Him. Truly it will take 
eternity to reveal to us what a powerful factor faith 
was in our midst. Let us briefly observe a few of 
the exploits of faith. First, by faith the wall of 
Jericho fell down. By faith, Joshua stopped the 
sun for the course of a whole day. By faith, one 
hundred and eighty -four thousand of the Assyrians 
were slain. By faith, the dead were raised to life. 
By faith the heavens were shut up and gave no rain 
for the space of three years and six months. And 
besides all of these mighty exploits of faith, the Holy 

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158 SELECT FRUITS 

Ghost inspires Paul to exclaim, "I can do all things 
through Christ which strengtheneth me." 

Observe a few of faith's offices. First : It is the per- 
ceiver and discerner of the invisible God. He is such 
a silent and invisible being, that blind unbelief cries 
out, "There is no God ;" but faith, the perceiver and 
discerner of things unseen, sees Him in the bloom- 
ing flowers and hears His voice in the musing winds, 
in the mighty deep, in the giant hills, in the murmur- 
ing streams, and traces His shining footsteps in the 
azure vault. 

Second : Faith is the coupling that links man to 
God, and earth to heaven. We have all seen the sin- 
burdened, tear-bathed seeker at the altar, crying and 
pleading for pardon, but all heaven seemed silent to 
his plea; but as he was exhorted to give up all and 
believe on Jesus, all of a sudden he seemed to lay 
hold on a rope that was suspended from the sky; 
and O, the joy, peace, and assurance that came into 
his heart, which convinced every one present that 
he had found God. God was there all the time, but 
the connection between Him and the seeker had 
not been made, which was "Faith." I once heard of 
a lady who was an invalid for years. One day as 
she sat helpless in a chair her daughter said, "Mam- 
ma, have you ever read that passage of scripture that 
says, 'Jesus bore our sins and sicknesses on the tree V 
The old lady was silent for a few seconds, and her 
eyes seemed to suddenly come open to her privilege 
in Christ, so with the hand of faith she seemed to 
grasp the rope that hung down before her from 
heaven, and leaped out of the chair and shouted all 
over the room, a well, hearty woman. But her scof- 



FAITH^ HOPE AND LOVE 159 

fing daughter criticized her, so she lost her hold of 
the rope and looked down, like sinking Peter, and 
resumed her place in the chair and remained an in- 
valid until the day of death. 

Third: Faith is the key that unlocks the store- 
house to every blessing. If, while we were praying, 
we would there and then claim the thing we prayed 
for, the marked results would be felt in three worlds. 
But our great mistake is, we wait to feel and see, 
before we believe we have the desired petition. Jesus 
did not say, ''After ye pray, believe that ye receive," 
but "when ye pray.'' Listen to His words : ^'There- 
fore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, 
when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye 
shall have them" (Mark 11:24). We are not to 
believe we will receive them, but that we do receive 
them, right then and there. 

Fourth : Faith is the member that introduces us 
to the spirit-world. How could we bid our dying 
friends ''Good-by," and tell them we will meet them 
in heaven, with such an assurance, if faith did not 
make the thing real to us? Faith's eye looks clear 
by the casket, clear through the cold grave, clear 
through the rueful waters of chilly Jordan, and sees 
the shining gates of translucent pearl, the jasper 
wall, the city of gold, the Father's face brighter than 
a million suns, and the teeming billions of saints and 
angels, clothed in snowy white and waving palms 
of victory. O, hallelujah! 

The second prominent factor, with its various 
offices, that I wish to mention, is Hope. Hope is the 
anticipating faculty of the soul. Faith is founded 
on this end of the promise, viz., the doctrines of 



160 SELECT FRUITS 

the Bible. Hope is founded on what awaits the 
soul in heaven. Notice some offices of hope. 

First: Hope is the anchor that holds the soul 
calm and steady during the times of storm. When 
the sun of God's face is veiled from view, and the 
black clouds arise, and the terrific winds of opposi- 
tion and discouragement are blowing, the mighty 
anchor of hope keeps the soul ever headed heaven- 
ward. 

Second : Hope sweetens present sorrows, present 
woes, and present anguish, with the promise of fu- 
ture joys. When everything on earth is swept away 
from the child of God, and all of his earthly pros- 
pects are tumbling to the ground, Hope mirrors to 
his gaze ^'a city without grief or grave, without mar- 
riage or mourning, and without sin and sorrow; 
where the sun never sets and the leaves never fade; 
where the wicked cease to trouble and the weary 
are at rest." 

The third and chief factor used in the redemption 
of man is Love. Kempis says: ^'Nothing is sweeter 
than love, nothing stronger, nothing higher, nothing 
broader, nothing more pleasant, nothing better either 
in heaven or earth." Notice some of the offices of 
love. 

First, it arms and qualifies the soul to withstand 
all that earth, hell, men, or devils can forge against 
it. It causes the soul to shout in the fiery furnace, 
praise God in jail, pray for its enemies and die for 
its foes. 

Second: Love is the alchemy that transmutes 
the human into the divine. We have all seen people 
get saved who were once cross, crabbed, impatient, 



FAITH^ HOPE AND LOVE 161 

blustery, and bossy ; but after the change had taken 
place, and love was perfected in their souls, they 
were daily transformed into the mercifulness, gentle- 
ness, sympathy, and loveliness of the Son of God. 

A third office of love : It is the wedding garment 
that prepares the soul to live with a holy God, in 
a sinless heaven. "Herein is our love made perfect, 
that we may have boldness in the day of judgment" 
(lJohn4:17). 



CHAPTER XL. 



OUR NEED OF EACH OTHER 



God has so arranged this world in which we live 
that there is not a self-existing, independent thing 
in the universe; but everything is perpetuated by 
the cooperation and assistance of another. Where 
this is true in the natural world, it is also true in 
the church of Jesus Christ. God has so blended the 
divine and the human that it is utterly impossible to 
serve Him without, at the same time, serving our 
fellow man. He has so arranged the Lord's Prayer 
that we must have a kind, brotherly feeling toward 
all mankind before we can make the first petition, 
viz., ''Our Father." 

Jesus said, ''Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to 
the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother 
hath ought against thee, leave thy gift before the 
altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy 
brother, and then come and offer thy gift" (Matt. 
5:23). Hence, by this, we can plainly see that he 
who serves God, must in a measure serve his brother 
also. The spirit of independence, division, and love 
of authority has done the church greater harm than 
all of the infidels that ever lived. Let us notice 
some of the ways in which we need each other as 
Christians. 

First. We need each other's influence. Truly, this 

162 



OUR NEED OF EACH OTHER 163 

would be a colder and more cruel world to live in, 
were there no other Christians in it but yourself. It 
is true they may not belong to your church, and they 
may differ from you on several minor points of doc- 
trine; however, you greatly need them in holding 
up the Christ of God to the world; and also to as- 
sist you in stemming the tide of sin and wickedness. 

A second way in which you need the assistance 
of others is that you need their prayers. There is 
Qo man living, no matter how holy or blessed he may 
be, who does not need the prayers of God's people. 
There never was but one man in the world who did 
not need prayer, and that was the Son of God. In 
nearly all of Paul's epistles he exhorts the church to 
pray for him. This modern way which people have 
of separating themselves from the church and the 
saints, and going out on this self -existing, indepen- 
dent, come-out line, is a sure way to apostasy, dam- 
nation, and hell. 

Third: The next way that we stand in need of 
each other is that we need each other's reproof. 
There is no man who can see his faults and mistakes 
as others do; therefore, it is absolutely necessary 
that we have some one to reprove us. The Psalmist 
said, ''Let the righteous smite me ; it shall be a kind- 
ness: let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent 
oil which shall not break my head" (Psa. 141: 5). 

A fourth way in which we need each other is, 
we need their peculiarities. We do not find it any 
great difficulty to love those who are lovable and 
congenial. But the difficulty arises in loving the 
unlovable, the obstinate and the obtrusive. Still it 
takes iust this kind of people to bring our flaws and 



164 SELECT FRUITS 

imperfections to the surface, therefore, they are 
greater blessings to us than those who are more to 
our likings. 

A fifth way in which we need each other is, we 
need each other^s sympathy. It is true, we do not 
feel the need of it when success is attending our way 
and the sun of prosperity is shining bright, but as 
one has said — 

"But naught was seen 
More beautiful, or excellent, or fair, 
Than face of faithful friend, fairest when seen 
In darkest day: and many sounds were sweet, 
Most ravishing, and pleasant to the ear ; 
But sweeter none than voice of faithful friend. 
Sweet always, sweetest, heard in loudest storm." 



CHAPTER XLI. 

GIVING PLACE TO THE DEVIL 

"Neither give place to ttie devil" (Eph. 4:27). 

I was especially impressed with the above words. 
If we modernize them they would read as follows: 
"Do not leave room for the devil." It is to be remem- 
bered that Satan does not cease to annoy us because 
he is cast out of our hearts, but as the Bible says, 
"The devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking 
whom he may devour" (1 Pet. 5:8). 

We all no doubt have heard the fable of the camel 
who just wanted to get his nose under shelter, but 
on being permitted to do so, kept pushing in until 
the whole camel was under. So is it with the devil. 
Even after we are sanctified wholly, if we do not 
steadfastly resist him he will crowd his way back 
into our hearts and lives. Notice a few ways of 
"giving place to the devil." 

First: By attempting to fight him with carnal 
weapons. I once heard of a brother who was a door- 
keeper at the church. One evening, during the serv- 
ice, some rowdies interrupted the meeting, and in- 
stead of this dear brother going at the matter of 
disposing of them quietly and level-headed, he began 
to tussle with them and jerked them around, hence 
the devil got stirred in them to the extent that they 
almost broke up the meeting. Besides, this brother 

165 



166 SELECT FRUITS 

lost his hold upon God, and is no doubt a backslider 
until this day. We must never try to fight the devil 
with the same weapons that he is using on us ; if we 
do, he will defeat us every time. Jesus taught 
this lesson in His sharp rebuke to Peter when he 
rashly cut off the ear of the servant of the high 
priest. Reader, ever bear this in mind, you cannot 
fight Satan with carnal weapons, but by faith, pray- 
er, and fasting. 

Second: The next way of giving place to the 
devil is for us to go too close to the thing that is a 
temptation to us. Reader, you must ever keep at a 
distance from all sin, and as one has well said, "Do 
not venture on sin, because Christ hath purchased a 
pardon. That is a most horrible abuse of Christ. 
For this very reason there was no sacrifice under the 
law for any wilful sin, lest people should think they 
knew the price of sin, as those do who deal in popish 
indulgences." 

A third way of giving place to the devil (i. e., 
leaving room for him to discourage us) is to allow 
ourselves to go too deeply into debt. Of course in 
some instances we cannot avoid going in debt to a 
certain extent, but for us to plunge unnecessarily 
in debt is wrong. What saith the scripture on this 
point? "Owe no man anything, but to love" (Rom. 
13:8). 

A fourth way of giving place to the devil is for 
a housewife to neglect, though a holy woman, her 
home duties, by not mending her unsaved husband's 
clothing or not having his meals ready when he 
comes from work. Many a Christian woman makes 
her home unpleasant and her crosses heavy by not 



GIVING PLACE TO THE DEVIL 167 

doing her duty at home, and hence it gives the devil 
an opportunity to incense her unsaved family against 
her and the religion she professes. This same thought 
applies to the brethren as well. Oftentimes the 
brethren neglect assisting the wives with the children 
and in various other ways, thus overbearing and 
pressing them until they become as cross and crab- 
bed as setting hens. Then they will go out and com- 
plain to the saints, "what a heavy cross they have 
at home," etc., etc., while at the same time they were 
the instigators of the heavy cross. They neglected 
their duty and thus gave place to the devil. There- 
fore, I do not think any such men are objects of 
pity. 

Fifth : The next way of giving place to the devil 
is for one, in giving his testimony, to publicly tell his 
faults, failures, and weaknesses. Some one has said 
that "the devil does not know everything about us 
unless we tell him." Hence for one to get up in the 
class or testimony meeting and tell all of his weak- 
nesses, failures, and shortcomings, only gives the 
devil and criticizing people a club to break over his 
head (so to speak). You must tell the people in 
testimony of your joys and victories, but tell God in 
secret prayer of your shortcomings and needs. 

A sixth way of giving place to the devil is for us 
to attempt to reprove or rebuke a sister or brother 
when they are under pressure, or when we ourselves 
are tempted and under pressure. At such times we 
generally do more harm than good. 

May the Lord bless and help us to keep every 
door barred tightly, so as to not leave room for the 
devil. 



CHAPTER XLII. 



THE CHURCH IN SYMBOLS 



"Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as 
the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army ^vitii 
banners?" (Cant. 6:10). 

Here we have in sjanbols a beautiful description 
of the characteristics of the Church of Jesus Christ. 
When a boy I thought the ^'church" consisted only 
of a building with seats and a bell, and several join- 
ers. Of course these things are all right in their 
places, but "the Church" means a thousand times 
more than these things. My purpose in this chapter 
is to paraphrase this beautiful picture of the Church. 
For convenience, I will divide it into five parts. 

1. ^'Who is she that looketh forth as the morn- 
ing F'^ "Morning'' is used to symbolize three things. 
First, it is used to symbolize "Life." Ever since 
the world began, the dawn of the day has been used 
to symbolize the dawn of life, and the setting sun 
to symbolize the night of death (Eccl. 12:2). This 
is a true characteristic of the Church of Jesus Christ, 
as He has so beautifully said, in John 10 : 10, "I am 
come that they might have life, and that they might 
have it more abundantly." There is not a dead mem- 
ber in the Church of Jesus Christ. There may be 
dead ones belonging to the meeting-house, who have 

168 



THH CHURCH IN SYMBOLS 169 

no knowledge of when they were born from above; 
but it is not so in tke Church of Jesus Christ. 

Secondly, ''Morning^' is used to symbolize Hope, 
and '' Evening y^ Despair. Of all the grand and noble 
institutions upon earth, there are none to be found 
that can inspire hope into the breast of a heart- 
broken, forlorn, despairing soul who is nearing the 
greedy jaws of death, and is on the margin of the 
grave. But the religion of Jesus Christ will turn his 
night into day, and give him beauty for ashes, the 
oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise 
for the spirit of heaviness. 

Thirdly, ^'Morning'' is also used by poets and 
artists to symbolize Prosperity and Success, while 
''Evening'^ is used to symbolize Defeat and Failure. 
The Church of Christ is truly an institution of pros- 
perity. When we look back nearly two thousand 
years and observe her in her infancj^, as Jesus, her 
great Head, stood in that upper chamber, surrounded 
by eleven humble followers, and offered that great 
High-Priestly prayer; and see what she is to-day, 
with her thousands of followers in every land, besides 
the blood- washed millions who have gone to be with 
their Lord. Thus we see plainly that it is by no 
means a non-successful institution. Therefore she 
does not need to beg and tease sinners, saloon-keep- 
ers, and ungodly men for their hlood-money, for her 
perpetuation. Away with such nonsense ! 

2. ^'Fair as the Moon.'' The moon here sym- 
bolizes three things. First, it is used to symbolize 
innocence, righteousness. What a beautiful char- 
acteristic is this of the Church! The first stratum 
in the kingdom of grace is righteousness. Hence, 



170 SELECT FRUITS 

every one of her members is righteous from every 
standpoint. Their lives and conduct are clean, up- 
right and holy, like unto that of the Son of God. 

Secondly, the moon is used to symbolize Purity 
or Holiness. Some preachers say that it is a new 
doctrine and never heard of in the Church before. 
But according to the Bible (which is the Christian's 
unerring guide) the Church of Jesus Christ has al- 
ways been a holy church, ever since the day of Pente- 
cost. Paul said, in Eph. 5 : 25, 26, "Christ also loved 
the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might 
sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water 
by the word, that He might present it to Himself a 
glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any 
such thing; but that it should be holy and without 
blemish." 

Thirdly, the moon is used to symbolize Peace and 
Serenity. How beautifully this harmonizes with the 
prophecy of Isaiah, "For unto us a child is born, 
unto us a son is given : and the government shall be 
upon His shoulders : and His name shall be called 
Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Ever- 
lasting Father, The Prince of Peace'' (Isa. 9:6). 
Truly the religion of Jesus Christ brings peace and 
contentment to every kingdom, nation, people, and 
tongue that will accept it; and as the prophet has 
said, "And He shall judge among the nations, and 
shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their 
swords into plowshares, and their spears into prun- 
ing hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against 
nation, neither shall they learn war any more" 
(Isa. 2:4). 

3. ^^ Clear as the Sun'' {i. e., brilliant as the sun). 



THE CHURCH IN SYMBOLS 171 

The thought expressed here is, that as the sun dis- 
pels the darkness and brings light and warmth to all 
of the sons of Adam, just so does the true Church, 
with the lamp of Divine truth. It dispels ignorance, 
error, and superstition everywhere it goes, and scat- 
ters the fire of divine love from sea to sea and from 
shore to shore. 

4 ''Terrible as an Army'' {i. e., resistless as an 
army). "An Army" is used to symbolize power and 
strength. Who can stand before a praying, fasting, 
weeping church? Is there any marvel that the Red 
Sea rolled up like a window-shade, the walls of 
Jericho fell down, the sun was stopped on his wonted 
course, the lion's jaw was locked, and three thou- 
sand souls were converted in a day? 

5. ''With Banners/' The word "banner" stands 
for Victory and Conquest. Some people preach and 
teach that Jesus will finally gain the victory over 
Satan's kingdom, some day. But according to my 
Bible He has the victory now, and not only does He 
have the Victory, but His Church has the victory. 
Paul says, "He led captivity captive and gave gifts 
unto men" (Eph. 4:8). "And I give unto them 
eternal life ; and they shall never perish, neither shall 
any man pluck them out of my hand" (John 10 : 28). 



CHAPTER XLIII. 

ODE TO THE BIBLE 

Hail, thou immortal book of God! 

The lamp of truth and love; 
Revealing ev'ry sacred code 

Required to live above. 

Thou, like the Western rocky peak, 

Hast stood the rage of Time; 
Refuting errors, far oblique. 

And furth'ring truth sublime. 

Thy face is like the lucent sun 

Illuming earth entire; 
Transfusing light to ev'ry one 

And scatt'ring holy fire. 

Beneath the ever-beaming ray 

The germ of falsehood dies ; 
And to drear climes, where heathens stay, 

Thy thrilling nurture flies. 

No human hand, with sword or flame, 

Can stanch Thy onward course; 
Nor Satan, with his skill or fame, 
Retard by fraud or force. 

But on and on, with conq'ring tread. 

O'er hell and ev'ry foe. 
Thou goest forth, with "Living Bread" 

And balm for ev'ry woe. 

172 



CHAPTER XLIV. 

BENEFITS DERIVED FROM OPPOSITIONS AND DIFFICULTIES 

Every Christian in the world is, at some time and 
some point, made to ask himself the following ques- 
tion : ''Why do so many trials and difficulties cross 
one's path when he becomes a Christian and starts 
to heaven?" This no doubt has perplexed and 
puzzled many a struggling soul. However, there are 
two things that we are to ever bear in mind. First, 
man is a fallen creature, living in a sin-blighted, sin- 
cursed, and God-cursed world. Hence, if he had 
justice, he would be in hell with the rich man crying 
for water to cool his tongue. Second, we must re- 
member, no matter how bitter the cup may be which 
the world presses to our lips, or how thickly the 
world may set our pillow with thorns, God is too 
wise to err in judgment and too loving to impose 
upon or treat us unkindly. 

Ofttimes, when in the furnace, 

I'm tempted to repine, 
But see in all God's dealings 

He aims to make me shine. 

My patience oft is tested 

'Neath tribulation's staff; 
But God is only trying 

To separate the chaff. 

Let us next observe some benefits brought to the 

173 



174 SELECT FRUITS 

child of God through the medium of Opposition and 
Difficulties. 

First, they test our loyalty and prove our sin- 
cerity, God is not satisfied with simply a verbal 
statement — 'Xord, I will follow Thee wheresoever 
Thou goest" — but He puts us to the test, as He did 
the man when He told him, ''The foxes have holes, 
and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of 
man hath not where to lay His head" (Matt. 8: 20). 
After God brought the children of Israel on the 
border-land of Canaan, He told them why He had led 
them through a certain test. ''And thou shalt re- 
member all the way which the Lord thy God led thee 
these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, 
and to PROVE thee, to know what was in thine heart, 
whether thou wouldest keep His commandments, or 
do" (Deut. 8:2). 

A second benefit that comes to the soul through 
Opposition and Difficulties is that they strengthen 
and develop character. If we were exempted from 
all crosses, trials, and opposition, we would have no 
moral backbone and strength of character. Our 
piety would be like that of infants, which has never 
been proved or tested, but is perpetuated through 
ignorance and restraint. What the '^pimch bag'^ is 
to the pugilist, trials and opposition are to the holy 
soul. They are sent to develop muscle, i. e., strength, 
character. 

A third benefit Opposition and Difficulties bring 
to the soul is, they keep it in constant communion 
with God as nothing else does. We must remember 
that joy and ecstasy do not bring the soul into the 
place of constant communion as quickly as do trials 



BENEFITS DERIVED FROM OPPOSITIONS 175 

and difficulties. No Christian is greatly bestirred to 
dig deeper in God when he is blessed and happy. 
But it takes the headwinds, the heavy crosses, the 
hard fights, and the great soul-pressure to keep us 
often and long upon our knees. It was when Israel 
was contrary, disobedient, and oppressive that Moses 
was caused to make constant visits to the tabernacle 
to converse with God; but when things were run- 
ning smoothly he did not make such constant visits. 
Just so it is with us. It was the opposition and 
persecution met from the Pharisees and scribes that 
caused the disciples to pray for strength and bold- 
ness to preach Jesus, and in answer to their prayer 
they received another great outpouring of the Spirit. 
They no doubt would never have gotten this second 
outpouring if they had not been opposed by their 
enemies. 

A fourth benefit derived from opposition and 
pressure is, they leave a peculiar sweetness, tender- 
ness, and mellowness in our spirits, that nothing else 
does. There is something about suffering and hard- 
ships that breaks the alabaster box of our crude na- 
tures and causes us to send forth a sweet odor of 
meekness, gentleness, longsuffering, compassion, 
sympathy, kindness, and heavenly refinement, that is 
rarely met with upon earth. 

He's doing the best for me 
To make me happy and free. 
Though often I am tempted to murmur 
He's doing the best for me. 



CHAPTER XLV. 



ON TRYING THE SPIRITS 



In 1 John 4 : 1, we are exhorted to ''try the 
spirits/' i e., put them to the test, so that we may 
determine whether they are of God or not. To-day 
we are living in the age of sham and imitation. 
Brass is being highly polished and sold for gold; 
glass is scientifically cut and sold for diamonds ; and 
soft wood is being grained and highly polished and 
sold for oak, walnut, and mahogany. Where this is 
true in the material world it is also true in the 
spiritual. There are so many religions and strange 
spirits going forth in the land to-day, viz., mediums, 
clairvoyants, palm-readers, and hypnotics, that, if 
possible, they would deceive the very elect. 

Let us notice two reasons why we are to try the 
spirits. First, it is because we are more easily af- 
fected in our spiritual natures than elsewhere. It 
is easier to mislead an honest soul here than at any 
other point. There seems to be something in the 
spiritual make-up of man that craves to see visions, 
hear voices from the unknown world, and feel va- 
rious touches, impressions and manifestations. This 
is one of the reasons why it is so difficult to g^t peo- 
ple to believe God and get saved by faith in Jesus. 
Nearly every seeker we meet is praying and waiting 
to hmr, see or feel something, before he believes God 

176 



ON TRYING THE SPIRITS 177 

and ventures on His promise. Satan is aware of this 
fact, hence he sends one of his evil spirits to falsely 
impress and mislead the soul at this point. 

A second reason we are to try the spirits is, be- 
cause Satan can switch even a good, well-meaning 
preacher and teacher of religion sometimes when he 
is not watchful, thus causing him to mislead hun- 
dreds of others. Therefore, it is not safe to believe 
what the preacher or evangelist says, no matter 
how accomplished he may be, if it does not harmonize 
with the teaching of the Bible. 

How to try the spirits, is the next thought worthy 
of our attention. When a new religious idea or 
thought is presented to us, we should first compare 
it with the clear, plain teaching of the Word. We 
should not build on any one isolated passage of 
scripture, but run the reference and weigh it by 
several passages. Do not ever accept any revelation, 
new doctrine, or advance thought which its advocate 
has to wrest the scripture to prove. This is the first 
thing that revealed the error of the "tongues move- 
ment" to the writer. Its advocate had to twist, bend 
and disjoin too many plain passages of scripture to 
prove his argument. 

Secondly, we are to try them by carefully com- 
paring their teaching with the apostolic example. 
There are hundreds of erroneous notions and ideas 
afloat in the land, trying to force themselves upon 
the Church, such as "foot-washing" (as an ordi- 
nance), "no collection," "the wearing of a robe," 
"water instead of grape juice for the Lord's Supper," 
"use no prayer but the Lord's Prayer," "the Seventh- 
day Sabbath," etc., etc. All of these questions can 



178 SELECT FRUITS 

be settled by simply comparing them with the apos- 
tolic example. We are told by a certain class of 
religious folks that ''foot-washing" is to be perpetu- 
ated in the Church, because Jesus said, in John 13, 
/'If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your 
feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet." But 
they seem to overlook the seventh verse, which reads 
as follows: "What I do thou knowest not now, but 
thou shalt know hereafter." The disciples surely 
knew He was washing their feet, hence we can see 
plainly He was teaching them some other lesson, 
more important than foot-washing. 

We all remember that Jesus, before ascending 
to His Father, said to the disciples, "Go ye therefore, 
and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of 
the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; 
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I 
have commanded you ; and, lo, I am with you alway, 
even unto the end of the world" (Matt. 28: 19). 

Now the first thing we will have to admit is, that 
the disciples were divinely led continually (John 
14: 26). Second, that they were to set the example 
for all Christians in all ages (Matt. 28: 19). If you 
will take your Bible and carefully examine the lives 
of the apostles you will not find a single instance 
where they had a public "foot-washing" service in 
a religious meeting after Pentecost. The only time 
it is mentioned in the whole of the New Testament, 
after the day of Pentecost, is in 1 Tim. 5 : 10. Notice 
the circumstances under which it is mentioned — 
^'Let not a widow be taken into the number under 
threescore years old, having been the wife of one man, 
well reported of for good works ; if she have brought 



ON TRYING THE SPIRITS 179 

up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have 
washed the saints' feet, if she have relieved the af- 
flicted, if she have diligently followed EVERY GOOD 
WORK." Now, any thoughtful reader can readily 
see that foot-washing is classified with ''good works" 
and is not an ordinance to be perpetuated in the 
church, as baptism and the Lord's supper. It is 
perfectly right to wash a brother's or sister's feet, 
if necessity requires it, just as we would perform any 
other act of charity ; but this is not to be kept up as 
an ordinance; if so, the apostles would surely have 
set the example. It would be well for those who are 
perplexed on these various subjects to read the 15th 
chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. That chapter 
plainly shows that Christians are not under the yoke 
of the Mosaic law. All "Saturday Sabbath" and 
"Wearing of Robes," and ceremonial performances, 
went with the Mosaic dispensation. Bless God! 

Thirdly, we are to try them by sanctified judg- 
ment and common sense. It would be well to put> 
all new doctrines^ advance lights, and new revela- 
tions to the following tests : First, Does it increase 
my love for God and my fellow man ? Second, Does 
it lead me to a deeper experience, or does it have a 
tendency to make one shallow, light and worldly? 
This was another testimony against the "tongue 
movement ;" its adherents would profess three works 
of grace, but after they received them, "the three 
works," as they were called, did not do for them what 
John Wesley said conviction would do for a man 
without any grace at all. These folks were as proud 
as peacocks, they still decorated their bodies with 
silks, satins, gold, feathers, flowers, etc., yet they 



180 SELECT FRUITS 

claimed to have all that God had provided for man 
upon earth. But Wesley said (referring to renounc- 
ing all of these things) ''All these things, God 
writes on truly awakened hearts." 

The third test that it would be well to put these 
new religions and advance lights to is, Do they build 
up and strengthen the people of God, or scatter and 
blight them from sea to sea, and shore to shore? If 
so, it is not from God but from the bottomless pit. 

The fourth test it would be well to put them to 
is. Do they increase or destroy one's Christian influ- 
ence? It is to be admitted that every one will not 
accept the teaching of a God-blessed and a God-sent 
man, but on the other hand, whenever we come in 
possession of a religion that does not win any one 
to God, but blights and kills our influence among 
both saints and sinners, everywhere we go, we may 
put it down that we have gotten hold of the wrong 
article. 

May God help us to put the spirits to the test. 



CHAPTEK XLVI. 



CLUB THROWING 



Years ago, when the writer was in school, the boys 
had an act of throwing wads of paper at each other 
during school hours, and then quickly fixing their 
attention upon the lesson, and by so doing would 
make it appear to the teacher and other students 
that they were innocent of the act. There was some- 
thing about it that was quite aggravating to the one 
who was being made a target, and hence this paper 
wad throwing caused many a schoolyard fight. The 
one who did the greater part of the paper wad throw- 
ing was generally a big, burly, ill-tempered school- 
yard bully. 

I have seen this same sarcastic, rabid, domineer- 
ing spirit manifested in the church, under the guise 
of religion. In some places they are known as ''Nag- 
gers," and in others as ''Club Throwers." Since the 
latter term seems more appropriate, we will adopt 
it for the character we are now writing about. 

Let us briefly observe a few noticeable character- 
istics of the "Club Thrower." First, he does more 
harm to the cause of God than a thief. He is like a 
blind adder in the middle of the road, that strikes at 
everything that passes. The only way he differs 
from the adder is that he inflicts a wound that lasts 
as long as Time, while the adder's may be healed. 

181 



182 SELECT FRUITS 

Secondly, the club thrower never feels contented, or 
feels that he is doing his duty, unless he is browbeat- 
ing or throwing slurs and insinuating remarks at 
some one. 

Let us next notice some of the many ways in 
which club throwing may be done. 

First, it can be done in testimony. Many times 
we have seen people come to church who had heard 
some evil report about one of the members, and 
would rise to their feet, and under the pretense of 
giving a testimony, would club-throw and browbeat 
that member unmercifully; and the lamentable part 
about it was, they would shout and pretend to be 
blessed, while throwing clubs, as poisonous as the 
sting of an adder. 

Second, club-throwing can be done in prayer. We 
have often listened to the club-thrower, brick-batting 
and clubbing his weak brother almost to death, un- 
der the pretense of prayer. This class of people can 
pray God to send fire from heaven and burn up their 
enemies, without any scruple whatever. The club- 
thrower always has his sling filled with rocks, red 
pepper, and brine. There is nothing winning, or 
sweet, or mellow about him ; he is like a bunch of 
prickly pears. He is always trying to wound some 
one. 

Third, Club-throwing can be done in an indirect 
conversation. We once heard of a country wedding 
where were several present who were not invited. 
The mother of the bride was one of those old-time il- 
literate women, and was quite displeased over the 
uninvited guests; hence she sought in some way to 
reveal to them the fact that they were not invited 



CLUB THROWING 183 

and were unwelcomed. As the evening passed away, 
the yard dog came into the guest chamber and was 
making himself quite at home among the guests, 
when the old lady made it her business to order him 
out with the following remarks : ''Get out of her', 
dog, from 'mong de people ! dare's more people her' 
any way dan was axed her'." Thus in these few 
words, spoken to the dog, but aimed at the people, 
she threw a club that stirred up more shame and 
embarrassment than the uninvited guests could live 
down in six months. How often have we seen this 
done in religious meetings ! 

Let us now notice some damning results that rise 
from club-throwing. First, it will destroy the unity 
and fellowship of any church between here and heaven 
or between here and hell. Second, it will discourage 
and cripple converts and new beginners. This club- 
thrower is like a horny steer in the barnyard, that 
is horning every calf that comes within his reach. 
Third, a rabid, sarcastic, insinuating club-thrower 
will discourage, insult and drive away more visitors 
and strangers from a church than anything I have 
in mind. 

May the Lord deliver us from the cluh-thrower, 
and from throwing the club! 



CHAPTER XL VII. 

THE THINGS THAT ARE CAESAR^S 

"And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar 
the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are 
God's" (Mark 12:17). 

The above statement has a broader and deeper 
significance than is usually seen by the hasty reader. 
Where Jesus here directly referred to the Emperor 
and the Roman government, He also referred in a 
broader sense to the world at large. Hence "Caesar" 
here stands for and represents the whole uncon- 
verted world. Therefore, in this light we wish to 
briefly treat the subject. These are days when, if 
the above command were heeded and put into prac- 
tice, there would be a great rebuilding of Christian 
influence and restoring of confidence in the religion 
of the Bible. Where the church has been greatly 
disgraced and put to shame by backsliders, on one 
hand, it has suffered a similar loss, on the other, 
from the conduct and statements of extremists, re- 
ligious cranks, and fanatics who ignored "the powers 
that be." And owing to this state of affairs, religion 
and holiness is brought into disrepute almost every- 
where. 

Now in the following lines I shall endeavor to 
briefly mention what the duty of a Christian is to the 
unconverted world. We must ever remember that the 

184 



THE THINGS THAT ARE CAESAR^S 185 

Bible in no place gives us license to intrude upon 
the rights of others, even though they may not be 
Christians. What saith the scripture on this point? 
^'Therefore, all things whatsoever ye would that men 
should do to you, do ye even so to them" (Matt. 7 :12) . 

Let us see what our duty is respecting the law of 
the land. It is the duty of a Christian to obey every 
command of the law of the land that does not conflict 
with the law of God (Acts 5:29; 1 Pet. 2: 13, 14). 
It is also a part of his duty, as a child of God, to 
pray daily for all men who are in authority. Paul 
wrote to Timothy as follows: ^^I exhort therefore, 
that, first of all, supplications, prayers, interces- 
sions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for 
kings, and for all that are in authority ; that we may 
lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and 
honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the 
sight of God our Savior ; who will have all men to be 
saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth" 
(1 Tim. 2:1-4). 

Second, the duty of the Christian to his unsaved 
neighbor is, that we, as Christians, owe our neigh- 
bor the ^'Golden Kule," i. e., we are not to do any- 
thing to him that we would not like to receive in re- 
turn. We are not to say anything about him that we 
would not like said about us. We are not to think 
anything about him that we would not like others 
to think about us. We are also to render him the 
same amount of assistance, when in a hard place, 
that we would like rendered to us in similar circum- 
stances. 

Third, the duty of the Christian to his employer 
is to give him the same careful, prompt, obedient 



186 SELECT FRUITS 

service in his daily occupation that he renders to 
the Lord on Sunday in his prayers. What saith the 
scripture at this point? ^'Servants, obey in all things 
your masters according to the flesh; not with eye- 
service, as menpleasers, but in singleness of heart, 
fearing God; and whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, 
as to the Lord and not unto men" (Col. 3: 22, 23). 
Therefore, this puts an end forever to all saucy, sar- 
castic, sharp back-talk. 

Fourth, the duty of the Christian to his employe 
is that he is to treat him with the same kindness, 
thoughtfulness, love, and patience that he would 
render to the Lord Jesus Christ if he had Him em- 
ployed. ^'Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of 
the least of these, my brethren, ye have done it un- 
to me" (Matt. 25:40). If this was adhered to, it 
would forever put a stop to the unfairness and 
cruelty w^hich the laboring man meets from his em- 
ployer. 

Fifth, the duty of a Christian to his unsaved 
family is that he should carefully and constantly 
(as far as possible) fulfill all of his duties and re- 
sponsibilities as a hushandj father, and example. 
(The Christian wife is to do likewise.) He is to 
promptly, openly, frankly, and humbly acknowledge 
any fault, and also freely ask his family to forgive 
him for any unmerited reproof or mistreatment that 
he may thoughtlessly or hastily give. He is never to 
allow his conversation or conduct at home to contra- 
dict his testimony which he gives at church on Sun- 
day. 



CHAPTER XLVIII. 



A SPIRITUAL APPETITE 



"As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth 
my soul after thee, O God" (Psa. 42:1). 

Among the first gifts imparted by God to newly 
born souls is an intense desire for spiritual things, 
yea, something that calls the soul away from every 
earthly pleasure or treasure and fills it with an all- 
consuming passion for God. The poet expresses this 
thought in the following lines : 

"My soul breaks out with strong desire, 

Thy perfect bliss to prove; 
My longing heart is all on fire, 

To be dissolved in love." 

This is not only the condition of every newly born 
soul, but the condition of every true child of God, 
however filled with the Spirit. There is something 
in the heart of every Christian that yearns day and 
night for the whole image of God. They are like the 
busy bee craving honey, which goes from flower to 
flower, and from field to field, in search of the idol 
of its life. So it is with the Christian; his inmost 
being cries out continually for more of God. He 
earnestly pursues Him in every act of life; yea, in 
reading and meditating on the Word. He earnestly 
pursues Him in the closet of prayer, and in the public 

187 



188 SELECT FRUITS 

services continually. There is such an all-consuming 
passion filling his inmost being, that at times it 
seems as if his soul would take wings and fly away. 

Souls thus possessed with an ever-yearning de- 
sire for more of God never oppose holiness or getting 
more of God. They are like misers who are hungry 
for another mite. People who oppose holiness and 
getting a better experience are wofully backslidden, 
no matter if they are preachers or presiding elders. 

The reason why it is so difficult to get people to 
attend the prayer and class meetings is because they 
have lost their relish for God. Hence it is an irk- 
some task to read the Bible and attend the services. 
But it is no difficulty to get them to attend an enter- 
tainment, or an ice-cream party, because they relish 
such things. In the natural world, if one loses his 
appetite and refuses to eat, it is not long before we 
have a funeral on hand. So it is in the spiritual 
world ; when people lose their appetite for secret 
prayer, reading the Word, attending the services of 
the Lord, it is not long before the church has a 
spiritual corpse on her hands. But the great mis- 
take with her is she fails to bury her dead; hence 
hundreds of her living children catch the same ma- 
lady and perish. It is so much so, that it is quite 
difficult to find a real healthy Christian. 

What I mean by a real healthy Christian is one 
who is all aflame and on fire for God, with an in- 
creasing desire for Him and His truth, and walking 
in all the light of the Bible. Of course we find a few 
of this kind here and there, as we go over the land, 
for which we are thankful, but the majority of the 
preachers and church members are as dead to God 



A SPIRITUAL APPETITE 189 

and holiness as the soldiers who died in the Civil 
War. They would be as much out of place in a holi- 
ness meeting as a span of mules would be in heaven 
drawing a mud wagon. The only longings and soul 
cravings they have are for a new style hat or a new 
gown or to have a new church (meeting house), 
where God is only allowed during a funeral (so to 
speak). When things are viewed from this stand- 
point it is easy to see why the modern preacher and 
his members fight clean living and holiness like 
tigers. 

Now, reader, be honest; have you ever felt this 
deep yearning for God ? If not, you have never been 
converted and born of the Spirit. If you once had 
it, have you it now — that deep heart cry for more of 
God, that intense desire for the Word, that high 
regard for the prayer and preaching services, that 
soul burden for the lost of earth? If you have not 
at least a measure of this, you are wofully backslid- 
den and out of touch with God. 



CHAPTER XLIX. 

KEEP SAILING ON ! 

Though long may be the voyage of life. 
O'er Time's tempestuous sea ; 

And every hope of reaching port 
Like shadows swiftly flee: 
Keep sailing on ! keep sailing on ! 

Though angry winds beset thy bark, 

And rudely 'gainst it blow ; 
And billows like a tidal wave 

With fury o'er it flow : 

Keep sailing on ! keep sailing on ! 

Though fogs of doubt may gather 'round, 

Engulfing sea and land; 
And all along thy homeward course 

Lie rocks and sinking sand: 

Keep sailing on ! keep sailing on ! 

The Christ of old is still aboard, 

Who ruleth wind and wave; 
And, as in sinking Peter's day, 

He still hath pow'r to save : 
Keep sailing on ! keep sailing on ! 



190 



CHAPTER L. 



SOME FRUITS OP HOLINESS 



When souls get justified, they get all of the fruits 
of the Spirit. So when they get sanctified they get 
the inbred sin taken out, and a double supply of the 
same kind of fruit they have. 

1. The first fruit is love. Holy people love God 
with all of their heart, soul, mind and strength. 
There is nothing in their heart that opposes the will 
of God, or desires to rob Him of any of His glory by 
contributing any good thing done to self, but renders 
it all to Him who is worthy of all praise. 

2. They love their neighbors as themselves. They 
bear a tender love to all mankind, both friend and 
foe, of all colors, all denominations, and all classes. 
This love makes its possessor equal to all, and a 
servant to all. They cannot hold any grudge against 
any one, no matter what they may do to them, any 
more than they can take fire into their bosoms. They 
are a friend to all, and an enemy to none. Nothing 
fills their hearts from January to January but pure 
love to God, and pure love to all the children of men. 

3. They are simple people; not aspiring to be 
great or prominent in the world, but seeking rather 
to be holy than to be wise. They are simple in their 
dress, in furnishing their homes, in spending their 
money, in dressing their children. Yea, they set the 

191 



192 SELECT FRUITS 

fashions rather than be led by them. O, they walk 
on earth, but live in heaven ! ''They are dead to the 
world and its applause, to all the customs, fashions,'^ 
etc. 

4. They are meek and lowly people. If a hun- 
dred of them should dwell under one roof, you would 
hear no quarreling, no loud, boisterous talk, no 
harsh, sarcastic words, no scolding, no complaining. 
They are lowly, meek and mild, at all times. They 
represent their lowly Master, 'Who, when He was re- 
viled, reviled not again." 

5. They are gentle as lambs. They never resent, 
or retaliate. They are cleansed from all stubborn- 
ness, self-will or hard-headedness. They are easy to 
be entreated, easy to be convinced, and take reproof 
gently and lamblike. 

6. They are a happy people. They "rejoice ever- 
more, pray without ceasing, and in everything give 
thanks." They are happy when they have plenty, 
happy when they have nothing. Happy when things 
go their way, and when they do not. Happy in health 
and happy in sickness. Why? Because they have 
chosen God for their portion, both for time and eter- 
nity. They can sing — 

"Earth is a scale to heaven for me, 

Sense points out the road; 
The creature all leads to thee, 

And all I taste is God." 



CHAPTEK LI. 

SIGNS OF HEART BACKSLIDING 

"The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own 
ways" (Prov. 14:14). 

To '^backslide" means to slide back from some 
attained ground. 

There are two classes of ^'backsliders." One is 
he who has fallen from grace altogether, and gone 
back into open sin. The other is one who still keeps 
up the outside forms of religion, but has lost the 
Spirit of Jesus. 

The backslider in heart still lives an upright life 
before the world; he is still prompt at meetings, 
takes part in all of the services just as he did when 
he enjoyed grace. He still testifies, sings, exhorts, 
gives, preaches (if he is a preacher), and sometimes 
shouts, and feels good in a red-hot meeting. He 
dresses just as plain as ever, keeps up family prayer, 
etc. 

We now give a few of the unmistakable signs of 
a backslider in heart : 

First — A lack of love for secret prayer. O, how 
the soul used to delight to spend hours alone with 
God! An hour spent alone with God seemed only 
like ten minutes. It kept up such unbroken inter- 
course with heaven until it seemed at times as if you 
would be caught up with God into the "third heaven." 

193 



194 SELECT FRUITS 

When you walked by the way or sat at home, or 
while about your daily toil, you could just breathe 
clear through into the glory world. Heaven seemed 
as real to you as the material world. 

You were never at a loss for a testimony, but you 
were full up to the muzzle all the time. It meant 
"testify" sometimes, or it seemed that you would 
burst. 

You had such a love for souls and the work of 
God until you could not be still. 

You were so careful over all of your manners ; and 
it was as easy to believe God as it was to breathe. 

But, some way or another, through your letting 
down a little here and a little there, you have lost 
that sweetness, and now your soul is dry and barren. 
Nevertheless, you still testify, pray, preach, dress 
plain, and all these things, but the love for prayer is 
gone. It has become a task to spend much time in 
secret prayer. 

You have to feel around for something to say 
when testifying. It does not bubble up any more like 
it used to. 

You do not strike fire in your prayers, testimonies 
and sermons, as in bygone days. My friend, you have 
slidden back. 

Second — You used to love the Bible. It seemed 
like a new book every day. Its pages seemed full 
of honey and sunshine. You could enjoy reading 
its chapters for hours ; but now it has become dead 
and dry to you. It is irksome to read one chapter 
at the "family altar service." 

Third — You used to love to hand out tracts and 
do missionary work from house to house, and hold 



SIGNS OF HEAET BACKSLIDING 195 

prajer-meetings here and there; but now that is a 
thing of the past. 

Fourth — You used to be so prompt to attend the 
prayer-meetings and class-meetings, etc. You could 
hardly wait for church time, but now you are late 
nearly every meeting. And where you used to be 
almost the first one to pray and testif^^, now it is all 
gone, and if you testify at all, it is away near the 
end of the meeting. Besides, 3'our testimony is dry 
and dead. 

Fifth — You used to be filled with such a sweet 
spirit. It was hard for you to see any one's faults, 
but now you find so many faults w^ith the preacher, 
the Christian people, the singing, etc. 

Sixth — l"ou used to take things so lamblike at 
home, and nothing could stir you, but now you are 
so easily tried. You are so touchy and impetuous; 
you are so hard to please by your companion, or 
the children. 

Seventh — Your words used to be so tender. Your 
tongue was always seasoned with the law of kind- 
ness, but now your words are sharp, cutting and 
sour. 

Eighth — You used to be so conscientious and 
careful in all your engagements, your conversations, 
in keeping your vows, etc. But now a spirit of 
slackness has settled over you, and you are somewhat 
reckless and careless about things. 

Ninth — ^At one time you had such a bright hope 
of heaven. You felt as sure of going to heaven as 
if you were already there, but somehow of late your 
hope has grown dim on your hands, and when you 



196 SELECT FRUITS 

look the matter of the coming of Jesus, and death, 
and the judgment, square in the face, you do not feel 
quite ready for it. You would not like it to come 
now; you want to get into a clear place, as you 
once were, before it comes. 

Friend, are not these unmistakable signs of a 
backslidden heart? 

There is a way back, by confessing and recalling 
old light and convictions, and praying through again. 

Do not be discouraged, but go in for it. 



CHAPTEK LII. 

A VISION OF DUTY AND PRIVILEGE 

The first eight verses of the sixth chapter of 
Isaiah are a beautiful description of God's dealing 
with an honest soul, and also a feast of fat things 
to spiritually minded readers. The first thought re- 
vealed there, that impressed the writer, was God's 
successful method of revealing the soul's need, and 
at the same time creating an intense appetite for the 
thing needed. If it had been some of us evangelists 
and preachers dealing with Isaiah, rather than God, 
we no doubt would have begun on him by pounding 
him with the "Holiness or Hell" club. But God used 
a different method altogether, which caused Isaiah 
to commence praying for holiness without ever hear- 
ing a sermon on the subject. Let us notice the method 
which God used. 

He first gave Isaiah a vision of duty and privi- 
lege; and in this vision Isaiah saw the great contrast 
between those holy beings and himself. Observe a 
few of the things which he saw, that convicted him 
of his need. 

First, he got a glimpse of a holy God and the 
cleanliness and purity of heaven; hence he quickly 
saw that he was no eligible candidate, in his present 
condition, to go up there to live. 

197 



198 SELECT FRUITS 

Secondly, he saw that God wanted His subjects 
to be filled with praise and adoration. Isaiah was a 
Christian, but he saw that those beings were filled 
with something which he did not possess. People 
are more quickly convinced of their need of holiness 
at this point than any other. On attending a holiness 
meeting, and seeing the saints' shining faces, and 
hearing them shouting the praises of God and giving 
such bold, fiery testimonies, it does not take the 
visitor long to awake to the fact that they are in 
possession of something which he does not possess. 

Thirdly, Isaiah saw the kind of service God re- 
quired. No doubt, heretofore, he had been a dull, 
tame, weak-kneed Christian; one that was a little 
bashful to pray and testify in public, one that was too 
reserved to scream, shout, and clap his hands. But 
on seeing the house filled with smoke, and the posts 
of the doors moving, and seraphims crying at the top 
of their voices, ''Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of 
Hosts ; the whole earth is full of His glory," he saw 
that he was not even half awake for God. 

Fourth — The next fact that he was awakened to 
through the seraphims crying, "The whole earth is 
full of thy glory," was that some of what they were 
enjoying could he had on earth. The greater part of 
the twentieth century preachers are telling their 
hearers how beautiful and holy heaven is, but are 
failing to tell them that they must be holy here upon 
earth to enter heaven (Heb. 12: 14). 

A fifth thing that got hold of Isaiah was the holy 
modesty and sanctity of behaviour the seraphims 
used in worshiping God. "With two wings they 
covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, 



A VISION OF DUTY AND PRIVILEGE 199 

and with two they did fly." No doubt Isaiah had 
been using some carelessness in his devotions, such as 
standing up praying, or looking about over the 
church while some one else was praying; or perhaps 
he was given to loud laughter and light talk in the 
house of God; or perhaps he had gone so far as to 
sit up in church and sleep; but on seeing these fer- 
vent, modest, holy beings, he could not help crying 
out, ''Woe is me, for I am undone." Hence, this 
frank acknowledgement brought immediate help. 
"Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a 
live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the 
tongs from off the altar; and he laid it upon my 
mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips, and 
thine iniquities are taken away and thy sin purged." 
A sixth thought revealed here is, immediately 
after receiving the fiery touch he was ready to carry 
the divine message. Therefore, by this, we are made 
to see plainly that no man is properly qualified to 
preach God's word without the cleansing, purifying, 
fiery baptism of the Holy Ghost, as was taught by 
John Wesley. 



CHAPTEK LIII. 



THE SPEAKING BLOOD 



"The blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than 
that of Abel" (Heb. 12 : 24). 

There is something in the above scripture that 
entrances and enraptures the soul like a chime of 
evening bells. If there is anything in all the Bible 
which inspires hope and courage into a fainting, 
despairing, tempest-tossed soul, it is the ''blood." 

Well do we remember how our souls, bodies, and 
entire beings are awakened when some one strikes 
up that old immortal hymn of Cowper's — 

"There is a fountain filled with blood 
Drawn from Immanuel's veins ; 

And sinners plunged beneath that flood 
Lose all their guilty stains." 

There is nothing we could say or do that would touch 
the heart of God, and bring immediate relief, as 
quickly as pleading the blood. 

The question may arise here, In what sense does 
it speak better things than that of Abel? In order 
to properly answer this question we must first see 
what was the plea of Abel's blood ? In Genesis 4 : 10, 
we read as follows: ^'What hast thou done? The 
voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the 
ground." Here we find the blood of Abel crying for 

200 



THE SPEAKING BLOOD 201 

revenge. The Mosaic law was based on this same 
principle. Therefore it demanded ^'an eye for an eye, 
and a tooth for a tooth." But, thank God, the blood 
of Jesus speaketh better things! 

I now proceed to show in what sense it speaketh 
better things than that of Abel. 

First, it speaketh pardon for the vilest sinner. 
Under the law men were to be stoned when they had 
committed certain classes of sin. But under grace 
the blood cries, ^'Whosoever will, let him take of the 
water of life freely!" (Rev. 22: 17). ^'Neither do I 
condemn thee ; go, and sin no more." 

The next sense in which it speaketh better things 
than that of Abel is, it says, "Forgive and accept the 
backslider and prodigal." The blood of Abel cried, 
"Stone the traitor, and burn him, and his house, and 
all of his goods, in the valley of Achor"; but the 
blood of Jesus Christ cries, "If we confess our sins, 
he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to 
cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). 
Again it cries, "If any man sin, we have an advocate 
with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous" ( 1 John 
2:1). 

A third sense in which it speaketh better things 
than that of Abel is, it sanctifies the soul and makes 
it holy. "Wherefore Jesus also that he might sancti- 
fy the people with His own blood, suffered without 
the gate" (Heb. 13:12). 

Fourth — The next sense in which it speaketh bet- 
ter things than that of Abel is, it is our armor when 
in conflict with doubts, fears, sin and the devil. It 
is said that in South America, where the snakes are 
numerous, the birds have discovered a poisonous leaf 



202 SELECT FRUITS 

which, when placed in their nests, prevents it from 
being robbed by the snakes. The leaf is perfectly 
harmless to the birds, but the very smell of it is 
deadly poison to the snakes ; hence they cannot stand 
to come about it. Is not this a beautiful description 
of how the blood protects the child of God? Satan, 
the old serpent, cannot stand the blood. When we 
begin pleading the blood he has to run. God would 
roll aside an unfinished world to come to the relief 
of a soul who was sincerely pleading the blood. 

A fifth sense in which it speaketh better things 
than that of Abel is, it prevails for our mistakes. 
Since we are all human and compassed about with 
many a mental and physical imperfection, we are 
all subject to making mistakes, and sometimes very 
grievous and hurtful ones. At such times Satan tries 
to discourage us over them ; but God knows that they 
are not wilful, therefore He covers them with the 
blood. 

Sixth — Another sense in which it speaketh better 
things than that of Abel is, it is the signet that makes 
our prayers payable at the bank of heaven. Jesus 
said, "If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will 
do it." When we attach the name of Jesus to our 
prayers and send them up to the throne, that sacred 
name brings all the cruel scene of Calvary fresh to 
the mind of the Father, and He readily grants the 
petition for Jesus' sake. 

Seventh — The last sense in which it speaketh 
better things than that of Abel is, it is the Christian's 
passport at the gate of pearl. We will not be admit- 
ted into heaven because we were members of the 
Methodist, Baptist, or any other church, but it will 



THE SPEAKING BLOOD 203 

be because we have the blood of Jesus Christ upon 
our hearts. 

"His blood atoned for all our race, 
And sprinkles now the throne of grace." 



CHAPTER LIV. 



FERVENCY OF SPIRIT 



The next advice we would give is, keep ^^ fervent 
in spirit." How many times we are exhorted in the 
scriptures to fervency of spirit — ^'Fervent in spirit^ 
serving the Lord" (Rom. 12: 11) ; ''Fervent in pray- 
er" (Col. 4:12); "Above all things, have fervent 
charity" (1 Pet. 4:8). The word properly means, 
to he hot; to hoil; to glow; ardent, earnest, etc. 

To succeed in business, or any other worldly en- 
terprise, we must be filled with a spirit of earnest- 
ness. No training, no discipline, no laws, can take 
the place of earnestness. 

Is there any wonder the country is overrun with 
"hireling" preachers, time-serving missionaries and 
evangelists, when there is such a lack of earnestness, 
holy glow, red-heated spirits; such a lack of faith- 
ful shepherds, who "cease not day nor night to warn 
the people with weeping" ; such few throbbing hearts, 
that are fired with heavenly love, which given vent to 
their feelings by their flow of burning tears; their 
groans and midnight prayers, for a lost and perish- 
ing world ; which cry continually, "Give me souls or 
I die," "Woe is me if I preach not the gospel," "My 
richest gain I count but loss." 

O, how many cut-and-dried holiness meetings! 
How many tame holiness preachers and professors! 

204 



FERVE^'CY OF SPIRIT 205 

How much powerless, tearless, burdenless, unction- 
less, groanless holiness flooding our land like the lo- 
custs of Egypt ! 

The devil is satisfied for us to profess holiness, 
if he is permitted to steal from us all of the fervor, 
the earnestness, the glow, the hidden fire, which 
makes us terrors to evil-doers and helps us to run up 
the "narrow way." This is his highest aim; for no 
soul is liable to backslide while he is kept hot and 
filled. 

O, beware of religious sloth, indifference, loose- 
ness of spirit, powerless religion, artificial prayers, 
unctionless sermons, lifeless testimonies; yes, shun 
them as you would the flames of hell. 



CHAPTER LV. 

SOME WAYS OF SPOILING A CHILD 

Nearly every honest citizen in the United States 
is alarmed and almost horrified at the yearly statis- 
tics of divorces, homicides, and suicides in our land. 
But there is a cause that lies deeply hidden beneath 
all of this alarming ejfect. This cause can be traced 
back to the home circle, which nowadays has become 
the nursery of the jails, hospitals, asylums, brothels, 
gallows, and hell. All this is brought about owing 
to the ill-training the children receive in the home. 

My purpose in this chapter is to point out some 
of the many ways in which children are spoiled. 

One of the first ways of spoiling a child is for 
one parent to take sides and defend it when it is 
being reproved by the other. This will make an 
anarchist and jail-bird of any child in the world. 

A second way of spoiling a child is to give it what 
it cries for. If you do this you will always have 
to pay it to stop crying. I have seen children, who 
were spoiled on this line, putting up a pretense of 
crying, so as to obtain the thing they wanted; but 
when I observed them closely I found they were not 
shedding a tear, but simply squeeling and putting 
on. 

A third way to spoil a child is to indulge it in 
laziness, by doing all of the housework yourself. If 

206 



SOME WAYS OF SPOILING A CHILD 207 

you do not train children to work while young, you 
cannot force them to work when they grow older. 
Therefore the results will be, they will become tramps 
and highwaymen. 

The fourth way of spoiling a child is to neglect 
using the rod. Of course this is to be done to a 
limited degree. The modern way of punishing chil- 
dren, by making them go to bed without their sup- 
per, making them stand behind the door, or telling 
them the ''boogy man" will catch them, is proving 
a failure, and is filling the jails and penitentiaries 
at an alarming rate. The Bible dictates the best 
prescription yet for rearing children — "Withhold 
not correction from the child ; for if thou beat him 
with the rod he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him 
with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell" 
(Prov. 23:13, 14). 

A fifth way of spoiling a child is to allow it to 
stay all night away from home, unaccompanied by 
some older person. Children will learn more vice in 
one evening than you can drill out of them in fifty 
years. 

A sixth way of spoiling a child is to dress it in 
a way that would be unbecoming to one professing 
holiness. 

A seventh way of spoiling a child is to not keep 
your promises with it. If you make a promise, be 
sure and keep it, or else you will teach your children 
to become liars like yourself. 



CHAPTER LVI. 



THE LITTLE FOXES 



There comes a time in the year when the gardener 
finds it very necessary to worm his vegetables. If 
he should neglect doing so the worms (though very 
small) would devour his entire garden. 

Just as the gardener finds it necessary to hunt out 
and kill the worms, equally does the Christian find 
it necessary to hunt out and kill the "little foxes." 

I now invite the reader to assist me in finding 
the little foxes. Let us also kill them as we find 
them. 

The first little fox that usually spoils a person's 
Christian experience is the fox of neglecting secret 
prayer. Have you got him ? If so, kill him at once. 

Second. — The next fox is, neglecting to read and 
meditate upon the Word, and also other good, help- 
ful books. 

The third is the Sabbath-desecration fox, viz., 
riding Sunday excursions, getting shaved, writing 
letters, sending telegrams (unnecessarily), talking 
on business topics, etc. 

The fourth, the talkative fox, viz., light talk, jest- 
ing, evil speaking, and meddling into the affairs of 
others. 

Fifth, the love-of-luxuries fox. There is not a 
greater enemy to godliness than the love of luxuries, 

208 



THE LITTLE FOXES 209 

i. e., costly foods, costly clothing, costly house fur- 
nishings, costly photos, etc. 

Sixth, the fox of sloth, i. e., lying in bed half of 
the Sabbath, giving way to sleep rather than attend- 
ing the prayer-meetings, not being on time to the 
Sabbath service, etc. 

Seventh, the short talk fox, i. e., speaking crossly 
to the folks at home, scolding, fault-finding and 
bossing. 

Eighth, the magazine and newspaper fox. Some 
people spend more time on these things than they 
do on the Bible, hence they lose their heavenly mind 
and become like the nations around them. 

Ninth, the worldly care fox. I usually feel a 
little fearful for a spiritual man or woman when I 
see them becoming too much absorbed in worldly 
cares. I am made to think of the words of Jesus, 
who says, "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any 
time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and 
drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day 
come upon you unawares" (Luke 21; 34), 



CHAPTER LVII. 

THE RESURRECTION 

Will my complexion e'er come back — 
My cheeks with health aglow? 

Will I be young, and handsome, too, 
As I was long ago? 

Yes, on Resurrection Day. 

Will all my members be restored 
From death's dark prison cell; 

And I in virtue stand complete, 
Like man before he fell? 

Yes, on Resurrection Day. 

Will all my loved ones e'er come back, 
Who're now beneath the sod; 

Who left me weeping long ago 
And went to meet their God? 

Yes, on Resurrection Day. 

And shall I know them all again, 

As when they went away ; 
And will they love and talk with me 

As on their dying day? 
Yes, on Resurrection Day. 

And shall I be from sorrow free, 

And all of sin's bequest? 
And will I ever reach a clime 

Unknown by "Reaper Death"? 
Yes, on Resurrection Day. 

210 



THE RESURRECTION 211 

And will my soul, and body too, 

Go up with angel flight. 
To see my Savior face to face 

And dwell with Him in Light? 
Yes, on Resurrection Day. 



CHAPTER LVIII. 

CRYING FOR THE RAZOR 

There lived a family in Chicago some years ago 
who had a very mischievous small boy. One day, 
on seeing his father's razor, he became infatuated 
with it and cried and fretted daily because he could 
not have it to play with. However, he took special 
notice as to where the razor was kept, hoping to be 
able, some day, to steal it out. So one day the op- 
portunity came, as both parents were absent for a 
short while. He quietly opened the dresser drawer, 
took out the razor, and began playing with it. But 
as he did not know how to handle or use it, nearly 
every way he turned it it cut his hands. It was cut- 
ting him so many ways and so often, that he became 
afraid to turn it loose or hold on to it; so when his 
parents returned they found him all bespattered 
with blood, with the razor in his hand, jumping up 
and down on the floor, screaming at the top of his 
voice. 

This narrative is a striking picture of God's chil- 
dren who, sometimes, in their blindness, cry, pray, 
and tease their heavenly Father for things which, if 
gotten, would be quite destructive. Let us notice a 
few ways in which we, through our ignorance, cry 
for the razor. 

First, we sometimes, in our blindness, think we 

212 



CRYING FOR THE RAZOR 213 

could get along so much better, and do more for the 
Lord, if we had plenty of money; but it is a sad 
mistake. There are many of God's little ones who 
have been wrecked on this rock. When they only 
had a limited amount of this w^orld's goods, they 
were holy, humble, teachable, and simple; but when 
they became rich, they soon grew proud, self-con- 
ceited, covetous, and high-minded, and instead of 
wealth being the blessing they had thought it would 
be, it proved to be the razor that cut them on every 
side. 

A second way of crying for the razor is seen in 
saints and workers who are anxious to get married, 
but owing to their special line of work, or poor 
health, or circumstances, etc., etc., they never get 
the Spirit's endorsement on that line. However, they 
will continue to tease Him from time to time, until 
He reluctantly gives consent. But they will not go 
very far up the road of matrimonial life before they 
awake to the fact that they have been crying for the 
razor. 

A third way of crying for the razor is sometimes 
seen in people praying for gifts and talents like those 
of others. The writer once knew a man who heard a 
lady speaking in tongues, and thought it was the 
most wonderful thing he ever heard. So he began 
praying for it, telling the Lord he had t*o' have it at 
any cost. He finally got it, but did not possess it 
many hours before finding out that instead of having 
the great blessing which he thought he was getting, 
he had taken hold of a razor. 



CHAPTEK LIX. 



TESTIMONY 



In this chapter I wish to give a few hints on 
testimony. I will first mention a few things which 
are not testimony. 

1. It is not to be a sermon. Many a testimony 
meeting is spoiled by people getting up and giving 
a great, long talk about this, that, and the other, 
advancing their views on various subjects. The testi- 
mony meeting is no place for such things. 

2. It is not an exhortation. People can exhort 
and tell others how to live and what to do, when they 
themselves are backslidden in heart. I am led to 
think strangely of an individual's religious exper- 
ience, who always exhorts others instead of giving a 
personal testimony. Exhorting others every time one 
gets up to testify, is one of the earmarks of a back- 
slidden life. 

3. The last thing that testimony is not, is stand- 
ing up and quoting a lot of scripture, or quoting 
Wesley, Shakespeare, or Milton. There are hundreds 
of folks, who use this method of testifying, who never 
were converted. 

What it is : To tell, in a plain, simple, truthful 
way, just what the Lord has done and is doing for 
you. If he has saved you, say so. If he has sancti- 
fied you, say so in clear, emphatic terms. The devil 

214 



TESTIMONY 215 

does not like people to say they are sanctified^ so 
tries to make them use milder terms, such as the 
following: ''more grace," "old-time religion," ''a 
deeper work of grace," etc. He is aware of the fact 
that these terms will not cause any one to seek a 
definite experience. 

Notice some benefits derived from personal testi- 
monies : They help us to keep saved. John Fletcher 
lost the experience of holiness five times, through 
neglecting to testify to it. They help us to keep free, 
and also to keep victory over the people. It is 
astonishing how backwardness and timidity get hold 
of us when we neglect testifying a few times. They 
also help us to grow in grace. Water without an 
outlet becomes stagnant; so does grace. The old 
proverb, "What we do not use, we lose," is very 
true in this case. If we neglect testifying a few 
times, we will awake to the sad fact that we haven't 
anything left to testify about. 



CHAPTER LX. 

HOW TO HEAR AND SETTLE A DISAGREEMENT 

Every preacher and worker who remains in the 
work of the Lord very long is at some time and point 
called upon by two of the brothers or sisters to settle 
a matter of dissatisfaction between them. The 
preacher or worker in this case is to take the place 
of an attorney, jury and judge. Therefore, he stands 
greatly in need of Divine assistance. In the follow- 
ing lines, I shall attempt to offer a few suggestions 
on how to settle such disputes. 

1. We must hear each party's side of the case 
with an unprejudiced mind, and without showing 
the least partiality; if not, we will there and then 
lose the confidence of them both. 

2. We^must have each person relate his side of 
the story to us in the presence of the other. How- 
ever, we must not allow the other person to interrupt 
until the first one has finished, or else it will cause 
a confusion. 

3. Do not hastily jump to any conclusion; but 
take lots of time to pray over the matter, so as to 
obtain God's clear leading. It would be well to 
remember the words of the Lord Jesus at this point : 
''For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be 
judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be 
measured to you again" (Matt. 7:2), 

216 



HOW TO SETTLE A DISAGREEMENT 217 

4. In forming our final decision we are not only 
to weigh the matter simply from each person's testi- 
monyy but from the spirit they exhibit in our pres- 
ence while discussing the matter. It was the lack 
of love for the child that revealed to Solomon the fact 
that the woman who so rudely contended for it was 
not its mother. 

5. In handling the matter between the two par- 
ties we ourselves are to be very careful to avoid 
speaking or dealing with either of them in a hard, 
harsh, or rabid spirit; if not, we will fail to accom- 
plish the desired end. 

6. If we succeed in getting the matter settled 
between them, we are never to mention it to any per- 
son in the world, but must thei^e and then bury it 
forever. 



CHAPTER LXI. 

^^HE KNOWETH^^ 

The above quotation, from the book of Job, is a 
source of great consolation to the soul which is aim- 
ing with all of its powers to please God. 

The entire human race is met by two extremes 
in this fleeting, changing life. One is, that of being 
overvalued by our fellow man; the other is that 
of being undervalued and misjudged. It is one of 
the impossibilities of this life, to please and re- 
tain the approbation of every one. We have often 
found, after our best effort to do so, that even in the 
attempt some one became displeased. Therefore, 
after such sad experiences, we are glad to find rest 
and consolation beneath the shadow of the above 
words, ^'He knowethJ* 

Let us notice some of the things which it gives 
peace and consolation to remember that God knows. 

First. Among the many things that give us con- 
solation in remembering that God knoweth, is our 
earnest desire to please Him. Even good people may 
not understand us, and sometimes criticize and sharp- 
ly rebuke us when we do not deserve it. Hence it 
brings us great consolation to look up into the face 
of Jesus and say, ''Lord, Thou knowest." 

A second thing which brings us consolation in 
remembering that God knoweth, is our deep, earnest 

218 



^*^HE KNOWETH^' 219 

desire to give and do, even beyond our power, for 
His cause and people. Many a good, honest soul is 
teased and browbeaten by the devil at this point, 
owing to not being able to give as much to the cause 
as he would like, or because he is hedged in and un- 
able to get out into the gospel work as he would like 
to, or had hoped to. But at this point it would 
be well to call to mind the words of the apostle Paul, 
in 2 Cor. 8 : 12 : "For if there be first a willing mind, 
it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not 
according to that he hath not." 

All the purest lieart intentions 

That adorn our lives to-day 
Will be read by men and angels 

When the mists have cleared away. 

All our seeming faults and failures, 

And misunderstandings, too, 
Will be seen in brighter colors 

In that final-day review. 

A third thing that brings us great consolation in 
remembering that "God knoweth," is our disad- 
vantages and hindrances, not known to the outside 
world. There are many who greet us at church with 
a smile and a warm handshake, who at the same 
time are wading the waters of domestic trouble, 
hardship and personal need, up to the neck. 

Ye know not the depth of the waters 
Through which my spirit doth wade 

Nor aught of the mountain of sorrows 
That 'long my pathway doth shade. 

However^ we have the consolation and blessed 



220 SELECT FRUITS 

assurance that Jesus knows, and will be our Judge 
on that final day. ''The wicked watcheth the right- 
eous, and seeketh to slay him. The Lord will not 
leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is 
judged" (Psa. 37:32, 33). 



CHAPTER LXII. 



SANCTIFIED INDIVIDUALITY 



One of the greatest strains Satan gets souls under, 
when first they get saved or sanctified, is straining 
to imitate or to be like some one else. Of course there 
is a sense in which we are to pattern after good men, 
but it is not to be done in such a way as to depress 
and imbondage the soul. God did not make us all 
alike. He only made one of a kind, throughout the 
entire universe; hence if we ape the other brother 
or sister there will be too many of a kind. 

The writer once read a story, in a juvenile story- 
book, of a hen and her little chicks who were out for 
a stroll on a green lawn that skirted the pond. In 
the meantime a duck and her little ducklings were 
sporting in the pond. One of the old hen's chicks 
became envious of the nice time the little ducklings 
were having; so he asked his mother if he might 
join them in their sport in the water. His mother 
gently said to him (in substance) : "Son, you were 
not made to swim but were made to travel on land. 
Your feet are not the kind required to swim." The 
little chick, not being satisfied with his mother's de- 
cision, finally gave her the dodge and went to join 
the ducks in the pond. The reader of course knows 
the outcome. 

There are hundreds of Christians just like this 

221 



222 SELECT FRUITS 

little chicken. They are trying to be the other fel- 
low, and the results are they are making a great 
failure. 

It will wonderfully set us aright on this point if 
we will carefully study and compare the lives of the 
most prominent Bible characters. They were all 
good men, and were mightily used of God ; yet there 
were no two of them exactly alike. Let us notice 
a few of them and briefly paraphrase their sanctified 
individuality. 

We will begin with Moses. You will notice, in 
studying the life of Moses, that notwithstanding his 
being the meekest man upon earth at that time, yet 
his most prominent characteristic was legality. 
From all outside appearances, there did not seem to 
be much love, joy, or mercy in his make-up. (How- 
ever, he no doubt possessed these graces. ) Law, law, 
law, was prominent from every viewpoint. I suppose 
we are well aware of the fact that all the Moseses 
are not dead, especially when we sit and listen to 
some sermons that don't seem to have one drop of 
love or mercy in them. However, we need just such 
preaching, and it has a very prominent place on the 
gospel bill of fare. Yet we do not want it for every 
meal. 

The next character we will notice is Samuel. 
Here we find a man altogether different from Moses. 
Samuel was a gentle, easy-going, entreating man. 
There was nothing about him that was blustery or 
denunciatory, but he lived where he could contin- 
ually hear from God. 

The third character we wish to mention is Elijah 
the Tishbite. Here we have a man with a disposi- 



SANCTIFIED INDIVIDUALITY 223 

tion and make-up quite different from either of the 
before-mentioned characters. Let us more narrowly 
observe him. He was a lofty, sublime, storming, 
stirring, sensational kind of a man. He swept 
through the country like a cyclone, striking terror 
to both saint and sinner everywhere he went. Let 
us notice his brief, seraphic career. The Bible does 
not give an account of his boyhood days, or the 
names of his parents, or his prophetic calling, or 
anything. He breaks in upon the world as if he 
dropped from heaven. The first we read of him is 
in the 17th chapter of 1 Kings. The chapter begins 
as follows (without giving him any especial intro- 
duction) : "And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the 
inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord 
God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall 
not be dew nor rain these years, but according to 
MY woRD.^^ Next we find him at Zarephath, praying 
the widow^s son back to life. After this we see him 
on Mt. Carmel, surrounded with four hundred and 
fifty of the prophets of Baal and thousands of people, 
while he pulled torrents of fire from heaven with his 
prayers. Next we find him on the top of a hill, pull- 
ing showers of fire from heaven upon those who hated 
the God he served. Again we find him bowed on the 
mountain, unlocking heaven and pulling down rain. 
Next we find him smiting the waters of Jordan with 
his mantle and going across on dry ground. And 
last of all we see him sweeping up to heaven in a 
chariot of fire! O, what a lofty, sublime, seraphic 
life ! And yet, it would not do for every one of God^s 
children to be an Elijah, or there would be no one 
to stay on earth and watch the stuff. 



224 SELECT FRUITS 

The next Bible character that comes up for in- 
spection is the prophet Elisha. He is a God-blessed 
and God-sent man, but quite a bit different from 
Elijah. Where Elijah was a man of solitude and 
seclusion, only coming among the people when on 
a divine errand, here we find Elisha an open, easy to 
approach, sociable man. And yet he wrought more 
miracles than Elijah. We find congregations some- 
times who tenaciously cling to a certain preacher, 
thinking no one else can fill his place; and if they 
are compelled to accept a new one they think he must 
he and do just like the former one. But this is not 
God's method. God (so to speak) takes away the 
candlelight to give us the lamplight ; takes away the 
lamplight to give us the gaslight; and removes that 
to give us the electric light. 

The fifth Bible character we wish to notice is 
David. Here we find a man who appears to be on 
the mount of ecstasy all the time. It is ^Traise the 
Lord ! Bless the Lord ! Thank the Lord ! O, magni- 
fy the Lord !" etc., all the time. Hence he would be 
quite a trial to a long-faced, firm, rigid legalistic like 
Moses. But yet this man has a place in the catalogue 
of Christian experience. 

Our next character is Jeremiah. Here we have a 
man who is continually pressed down with the bur- 
den of souls. He is crying, sighing, and groaning 
nearly all the time. He says, "O that my head were 
waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I 
might weep day and night for the slain of the daugh- 
ters of my people!" (Jer. 9:1). If Jeremiah was 
like some of our modern holiness folks, David, with 
his ^Traise the Lord'' all the time, would be quite 



SANCTIFIED INDIVIDUALITY 225 

a trial to him ; while, on the other hand, David would 
not believe Jeremiah had the experience of holiness 
at all, simply because he did not praise the Lord and 
jump and shout all the time. It would be well if 
we, as holiness people, would bear this thought in 
mind. 

Our seventh character is Ezekiel. Where Moses 
was a legalistic, Samuel a holy, calm, praying man, 
Elijah a seraphic flame of fire, Elisha a social-circle 
soul-winner, David the man of praise and ecstasy, 
Jeremiah the intercessor and burden-bearer, here we 
find Ezekiel the visionary man. Some people do not 
believe in visions, while, on the other hand, some 
are tempted and tried with God because He has given 
others great visions but has never given them any. 
eTohn Wesley said, ''In the earlier part of my Chris- 
tian experience I thought that the Christian who 
got the most visions and revelations had the greatest 
faith, but later I found that he had the least faith, 
hence God had to give him an occasional vision to 
keep him from failing utterly." Therefore let us 
neither envy or doiiht the brother who seems vision- 
ary, but leave him with his God. 

This same thought holds good in the New Testa-' 
ment. John was a man whose theme was "Love, love, 
love." Paul's theme was, ''Faith, faith, faith." 
Peter's theme was, ''Hope, hope, hope." While 
James' theme was "Works, works, works." 

O, may the Lord give us enough charity and com- 
mon sense to be contented to be ourselves in God, 
and let the other fellow alone. 



CHAPTER LXIII. 



LIFERS SUNSET 

I'm summoned home. Farewell, vain world, 

With all thy toil and tears! 
My task is done, my race Is run, 

I'm freed from all thy fears. 

Across the isthmus of my life 
Streams light from yonder shore: 

'Tis daybreak of Eternity, 
And tells me all is o'er. 

'Tis true it's but the noon of life, 

And all invites my stay; 
But Jesus calls, and work is done ; 

Why should I yet delay? 

Thy iron hand has pressed me hard 

Since life's unclouded morn; 
And all along my winding path 

Set here and there a thorn. 

My shining face thou oft didst bathe 

In sorrow's midnight dew; 
And issued with each passing day 

Temptations not a few. 

I blame thee not ; 'twas all for good ; 

My Father deigned it so; 
"Through tribulation," Jesus' blood 

Has washed me white as snow. 

226 



LIFERS SUNSET 227 

I've "overcome" and won the prize. 

Through grace, which Jesus gave; 
And now a victor stand complete 

O'er Death, and Hell, and Grave. 

O, let not friends and loved ones sigh, 

For we shall meet again, 
When Jesus comes to claim His own 

With all His heav'nly train. 



^PR 14 1313 



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